By Jo Nova
The bottomless pit of public spending strikes again
Germany added 14 gigawatts of wind power in the last 5 years, however the total amount of electricity produced is still around 106 Terawatt hours.
Imagine how much money they could have saved if they hadn’t bothered to add more wind turbines?
Wind power is like a perpetual public money vacuum.
From Pierre Gosselin at No Tricks Zone:
Germany’s Die Welt: “Too Much Is Too Much” … Green Energies Are Cannabalizing Each Other!
Wetzel describes this as a ‘wind power puzzle’ and discusses several possible causes:
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- Several years with weak wind conditions,
- More frequent curtailments of wind turbines due to grid bottlenecks,
- The expansion of wind farms at weaker inland locations,
- So-called shading or ‘wind theft’ effects between wind turbines.
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Australia has already done the same experiment. No matter how much wind power we add to the grid we can’t seem to get the bare minimum to increase, (the dark green columns at the bottom).
ie. Wind power remains 95% Useless.
The Australian experiment thanks to WattClarity
The maximum amount of wind power increases but the part we can rely on to always be there, barely exists.
Yet another Law the gan greens don’t understand, that of Diminishing Returns. The mind boggles at the foolishness of the Voter. The vote for it, pay taxes, get nothing for their money, then vote for it again. i hope ON will be different…
A look at the weather map over Australia shows we’re unlikely to pul much from wind either for a bit. It does my head in – we need Gas to level sun and wind, so why not pay once, just for Gas and Coal?
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Even over a continental land mass the size of Australia, the tendency is for wind to be all blowing or not blowing at the same time.
It’s a myth that “it’s always blowing somewhere” and that you just have to add enough bird mincers to capture the wind wherever it is.
But science, reason and facts were never the strong points of the Left.
Even the fully woke Australian Energy Council agrees.
Quoting another report:
I think Jo has published an article on this as well.
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“bird mincers”
That image Jo has placed on the top reminds me not only of mince meat grinders but also the warning placed on olde sailing charts for parts of the world unknown and yet to be discovered:
Thar Be Monsters Here, Yarrrr!
It would seem ‘modern man’ in all his wisdom / ignorance is still discovering Leviathan.
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There is seldom harvestable wind over the north and the great inland plains. The best are in the roaring forties – Vic west coast and SA’s east. If it ain’t blowin’ there [and they’ve just had a month of the doldrums ’til this week’s gale where there was prolly curtailment] there isn’t much to gather elsewhere.
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Correct, and if that is a limitation in a massive continental landmass like Australia (7.7 million km^2), just imagine how much of a limitation it is in a comparatively small country like Germany (0.4 million km^2). And Germany is one of the larger western European countries. Low-density renewable energy makes even less sense in smaller European countries.
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Consider that Queensland alone is greater in area than France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom combined.
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That reminds me of a time some years ago when the company I was working for in Australia was taken over by a French company. (It never worked out!). I went over to France to introduce our company to the French management and my first slide was a map of Australia with a map of France superimposed ….. fitting neatly into the Northern Territory! Gasps of “c’est impossible” came from everywhere! Europeans have no concept of the size of this country of ours.
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But when you look at the wind data from the Bass Strait islands, it quickly becomes evident that even those locations don’t have reliable wind.
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King Island, diesel generators and battery storage and added wind turbines instead of a more reliable cable to the mainland electricity supply, and more often than not the diesel generators are in use.
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It is a pity that the Albany, Denmark and Mt Barker (WA) windfarms are considered too small to include in the regular reporting. Denmark has been reported as considering the installation of additional “fans”.
I would suggest that those three farms are better situated for consistent ourput than any in SA or VIC.
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It has been reported that the Albany turbines employ a gent to collect the sea birds such as pelicans that have been struck by the turbine blades.
When last at Denmark, never saw its blades turning.
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I don’t know about employing people to collect bird carcasses. I think that the rats would get to them first. If you want to know the kill rate for these bird mincers, count the rats.
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An argument against the ‘wind is blowing somewhere’ is that all of the ‘somewheres’ have to meet the current capacity requirement.
This means over-building every wind farm – more $$$s down the drain
Wasn’t it Julia G who stated that we shouldn’t be gold-plating the electrical system (or words to that effect)?
It appears BOBowen wants to rhodium-plate the wind system and hope the lights stay on
(rhodium = the most expensive metal)
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The other argument against ‘the wind is blowing somewhere’ is that you need to build a whole new massive transmission infrastructure to get that energy from ‘somewhere’ to where it is needed. And to do that, you also also need spinning generation to generate inertia to push that power over those long distances. And finally, you need to account for transmission losses over those long distances. It’s not as simple as harvest a gigawatt in Perth and you can use that gigawatt in Melbourne.
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At the current average build cost of $14m/km, building more long-distance lines quickly becomes far too expensive. And the AEMO WA website shows that the west coast also suffers from regular wind droughts.
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Her comment “gold plated poles and wires” was in reply to advice about the costs involved in connecting the wind farms (and solar paddocks and batteries) to the main transmission lines, she was genuinely surprised and her reply was meant to be sarcastic
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Dennis,
Have you a reference for that, because I don’t remember renewables coming into the “gold plating” claim at all.
My memory seems to be borne out by this ABC story from 2012 (***WARNING*** starts with blood-curdling photo):
I.e. she was calling it “overinvestment” — a frivolous cost — not part of the cost of connecting virtuous generators.
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Robert
FWIW
I think that was before “the magic of the wind and solar miracle” had realised that they actually needed transmission lines
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When you look at where the winds are blowing most consistently around the world, the wind band is BELOW Australia.
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Tasmania is just barely situated in the roaring forties. Before it was discovered to be an island separate from mainland Australia, Sydney bound ships would sail around Tasmania, taking advantage of the winds below.
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Doesn’t it make sense then to stop building wind farms altogether. Solar, much as I don’t like it, is more dependable than wind ever was. We could save a great deal both financially and environmentally. No need to destroy the tops of mountains and koala habitat.
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Any time, you can look at windy.com and draw a line for the equator. There is “never” wind blowing there.
You get the Placid Pacific and going south you get to the Roaring Forties and the Furious Fifties. Competitive yacht racers are not allowed below that, it gets worse. The bulky bit of Sth America and Sth Africa have little wind when I think to look because they are too far north and the heat off the land lifts air currents above the turbines. ATM there are 30 kt winds at 30,000 ft over the centre, near calm at ground level.
A half honest green would say: Wind in the south, solar in the north, don’t get it mixed up. I’m agin both of course at grid level.
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Germay has a problem. When the wind blows those wind turbines generate too much power, so it has to be sent over interconnections to other countries in the EU, disrupting their economies. Indeed several countries (Poland, Czechia, Finland) have made sure they cannot get it dumped on them.
When the wind doesn’t blow enough, then those interconnections can send electricity (at a price) to Germany.
And then there is solar. When it is sunny they generate too much, and some stable supplies has to be shut down (or kept on standby, at extra expense).
Then there are the Dunkelflautes when both wind and solar doesn’t work. Electricity prices shoot up, up by 600% in the last time, which means that politicians in countries with interconnections to Germany suddenly find the public don’t like having to pay 600% more. So much so, that Norway and Sweden are considering how to cut off those interconnections and reserve electricity for their own voters.
The only way Germany can reduce this situation is shutting down their industries, which they are doing at a rapid rate. The result is a lot of unemployed people who are somewhat disgruntled.
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What could possibly go wrong, especially in Germany who don’t have a favourable history in that area and once thought National Socialism would be a good idea…
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On the plus side, if Germany’s economy collapses and it’s social safety net frays, that will solve their immigration problem (while exacerbating problems in EU countries who can still afford to give free stuff to illegal immigrants).
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Ahmed al-Sharaa, the President of Syria recently met with the Chancellor of Germany seeking the return of 800,000 Syrian citizens. It would be a win win situation since the Syrians are not exactly compatible with the Germans and the Germans are not happy paying the social services the misfits demand.
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somewhat disgruntled!
Is that the best they can do? Vote for AfD.
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Ugly, useless machines
The state of New York is doing this:
“The New York State Legislature has advanced legislation to promote “floating solar” (solar arrays mounted on water) to generate renewable energy. The bill (Bill 2025-S4571A) directs state authorities to establish an incentive and education program for placing solar panels on lakes, reservoirs, and canals.”
Not near water, but right on top. New York is run by True Believers and is only second to California for middle class, upper class and rich entrepreneurs fleeing.
New York has some 7,500 lakes to destroy. Who needs lakes anyway.
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Idiotic.
Lakes/rivers all have food chains of their own. Coating their surface with solar panels will prevent sunlight from reaching the lake flora and kill off the base of the food chain, not to mention all the nasty chemical compounds that leach from the panels as they age and begin to break down.
No photosynthesis, no life. Floating solar is a sure-fire way to end up with a dead lake.
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Awkward for waterfowl as well.
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Feed the waterfowl powerful laxatives. Generates employment for panel cleaners!
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Last week there were posts on social media regarding a very large floating solar installation somewhere offshore China. It just looked hideous. Plus, you would have to wonder about potential storm damage, corrosion and other complications.
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And what about the deprivation of sunlight beneath them? It will stop marine plants and phytoplankton from growing plus confuse the fish..
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I believe Singapore already has a floating solar array.
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The Chinese need somewhere to park all their solar panels made by slave labour. Albo is trying to convince the US that we don’t buy the tainted panels. The slaves will now just be used for organ harvesting.
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I read a comment about renewable energy the other day which was put in very simplistic terms. Even half witted senior politicians could understand. No talk of capacity factors, peak demands, carbon emissions and definitely no pretty charts.
It went a bit like this – wind at best can provide about 2 days a week worth of electricity. Solar about 1. So, what happens to the other 4 days?
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I liked to description as being like buying a car that will only start up to 35% of the time and no guarantee as to what times they would be.
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Ben Fordam gives the sources of electricity for the past 24 hours each morning. Lately coal has been running in the 70% plus band. It was 77% on Tuesday. Wind and solar were both in single figures.
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That statement highlights the error with averages.
Solar is the better choice because it never goas missing in places like Australia for any more than a few consecutive days. Wind can take up to two eeks annual leave in consecutive days usually in June.
Consequently, the cost of “firming” wind is much higher than firming solar.
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Ross, you asked “so, what happens to the other 4 days?” Obviously we can all take those days off work! What’s not to like?
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the WattClarity graphic is from 2022. Anyone seen an update closer to 2026.? it would be more relevent given the Germany headline/topic is for the last 5yrs.
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Here’s a newer chart from Watt Clarity, there are a number of charts, just type “Wind Stats” in the search box.
https://wattclarity.com.au//wp-content/uploads/2024/09/2024-09-08-nemreview-monthlywindstats.jpg
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Maybe in a couple of hundred years, they’ll look quaint.
They can be restored and turned into Airbnbs.
Since we are now officially not all going to be dead in five years.
It is official isn’t it?
Stuff changes at the speed of Science.
I may not be up to date.
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As always, this is ONLY about domestic needs. 2/3 of the energy essentials of the Country are for liquid fuels as we have just become brutally aware.
If you work for the government or a hospital or as a teacher or provide services or food, who is actually making the money which allows us to pay everyone? What are the windmill pushers going to do about actually making an income as a country? Are we using windmills to go mining? Farming? Shipping? Flying? Sailing? Manufacturing?
Who actualy provides the food? The metals? The goods, the machines, the aircraft, the cars, the telephones, the plugs and wires, the power lines? Fertilizers, plastics, glass, concrete, steel, cloth, clothes, shoes? The list is endless. Increasingly none of them made here. So how do we pay for them? Australian concrete manufactureres are cutting down trees to make concrete with massive CO2 taxes. That’s insanity. Killing the goose.
This absolute fascination with windmills, even more and more windmills is idiotic. Everything was fine before windmills.
500,000 Gigantic windmills later, CO2 is completely unaffected. Isn’t that the only purpose, the entire purpose. Windmills do not reduce CO2.
“”Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
So why more windmills? Who is going to replace them all in 20 years when they don’t work today? And who is going to pay for it? It’s beyond idiocy, bad decision making. There was never any point in the windmils in the first place because CO2 is a constant set by the oceans and the sun. It has nothing to do with human activity. There was never any proof. And nothing has reduced CO2. Stop now.
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Windmills are probably only good for some domestic lighting and to charge an internet connected appliance like a phone or tablet (all battery backed) so Big Brother can monitor you and to receive Government propaganda. Oh, and to heat your insect ration for 3 mins in the microwave.
Certainly not industry or commerce.
Most people who push windmills are politicians, senior public serpents, unemployed/unemployable Leftists or grifting subsidy harvesters, a vast majority of whom have never had a proper wealth-creating job.
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Or you could argue that wind power is cheaper. And it’s always blowing somewhere. So a hurricane at Port Headland can make cement in Tasmania. Who believes this nonsense? I expect no one. It’s all about poltics.
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‘Several years with weak wind conditions … ‘
Blocking high pressure is a universal problem.
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Peta Credlin today on Nuclear Submarines under AUKUS, now the obvious Target of the extreme left communists including Albanese and half the Labor party.
“Labor doesn’t like defence and is terrified that nuclear subs will mean nuclear power. Because nuclear power means the end of the net-zero gravy train. Because it has always been about the billions in subsidies. It was never about saving the planet or lowering emissions; it’s just been a way to rebrand unpopular foreign aid and keep the grifting in place.”
As if the UN has not made that clear.
Windmills are legislated money pumps for friends of the Labor party, domestically and in China. As for Australia being a ‘Renewables Superpower’, what part of that makes sense?
Windmill powered submarines R&D should be a task for the CSIRO.
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Steady ON, TdeF. You’ve give them ideas, and before you know it there will be millions directed to them.
I must say that the only 2 times I was involved with CSIRO projects, they were a flop. The last one was a new way of making polymers which took 2 hours (approximately) to set up for a demonstration in our laboratory, and 20 seconds for the device to turn solid (we wanted liquid types).
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Note the descriptions of the US Virginia Class nuclear submarines planned for delivery to our RAN, second-hand, used, run down, and so on.
Those USN submarines are well serviced and have major overhauls scheduled and the first two delivered for RAN will have come straight out of major servicing and have I understand at least twenty seven years before scheduled retirement, but that could be extended if necessary.
And the three on order, last might be a new submarine, are an interim gap filler measure between existing Colins Class conventional submarines now reaching time for retirement and the SSN AUKUS new generation design to be built here and in the UK for RAN and RN. The SMRs have already been ordered from Rolls Royce UK early 2025 by the Australian Government.
Also, the first of the Ghost Shark large unmanned submersible drone was delivered for evaluation in 2022 by US firm Anduril under contract arranged by the Morrison Government and designed and built in Sydney. The plan is to have Ghost Shark using crewed vessels as “mother ships” and carrying out missions without risk to people as no crew on board.
Similar “force multiplier” as the second stage of Joint Strike Fighter Programme Howard Government that delivered the 72 F-35 Lightning stealth fighter jets for the RAAF designed and built in the US. Called Loyal Wingman Project, now Ghost Bat MQ-28 and designed and built by Boeing Australia with RAAF consultants. Now six flying and being developed, and also export potential to allied nations as with Ghost Shark.
The interim supply chosen were US F-18 Super Hornets to replace the retiring F/A-18 classic Hornets until the F-35s were all delivered. Albanese Labor cancelled the outstanding order for 28 F-35 in 2022/23.
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I was very annoyed watching Business on Sky recently and a segment about Ai and date centres, the guest a female CEO from the industry, I forget the business name.
However she claimed that Australia is now very well positioned to become a world leader in the new business sector because of the “green” renewable energy building and already available infrastructure.
None of these woke individuals understand that based on AEMO data the average output, capacity factor, for every 100 MW installed capacity is up to 35 MW, and that the wind does not blow everywhere at the same time and in many locations periods of no wind at all. It should be obvious that, my favourite example Liddell coal fired power station when operational had four generator units and combined installed capacity 2,000 MW. Capital Hill wind farm NSW has 67 wind turbines with combined installed capacity of only 140 MW and therefore on average up to 49 MW delivered.
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To replace Liddell with wind turbines you would need 666 3MW turbines Since they only provide power one third of the time we now need 2000 turbines. @ $3million a pop that is $6 billion. They need to be replaced every 20 years or three times over the 60 years Liddell operated for. That’s $18 billion. Now sometimes the wind does not blow so we need batteries. If Snowy is the battery it releases 2000MW for two days so a week long wind drought will need at least 3 Snowy batteries. Your guess how much that would cost. The fact is that the $18 billion would be more than sufficient to build 3 new Liddells. We are surrounded by madness.
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It does not work like that. The guaranteed output of wind turbines is ZERO. so no amount of them can replace a coal fired plant. You are making the same mistake Finkel made back in 2026.
Firmed solar is lower cost than wind. To replace Liddell’s 2.2GW with firmed solar/battery would cost around $48bn.
There are no other pumped hydro site as cost effective as Snowy 2 and it is costing $42bn just for the hydro and some transmission lines. That cost excludes wind turbines or solar panels.
Snowy 2 might go close to replacing Liddell but that will not be known till 2030.
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Liddell can run 24/7 for years, excluding sceduled maintenance.
Snowy 2 running at peak will only generate power for about 7 days before…ahem…it needs to recharge.
And here’s the kicker…Recharge time could take up to 3 months!
I posed the following question to AI…
“I have read that snowy 2 would take approximately 3 months to refill the top reservoir.
Is this correct?”
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Environmental benefits
If you are serious about meeting our international climate change targets, then you must include zero emission nuclear as part of your energy mix. Zero emission nuclear power plants produce no air pollution or carbon emissions.
Zero emission nuclear power plants also use much less land and raw materials than large scale renewable projects. For instance, a next generation nuclear power station, including all auxiliary buildings and the security perimeter would cover about 45 acres (roughly the size of a mid-sized shopping centre). For every MWh of electricity produced:
Wind requires 360 times more land than nuclear.
Solar requires 75 times more land than nuclear.
In addition, unlike a modern nuclear plant, which can be plugged into the existing grid, Labor’s expensive renewables-only grid requires up to 28,000km of new transmission lines.
By reducing impacts on our landscape, zero-emissions nuclear will not only protect regional communities, but our environment and wildlife.
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Our we can just burn our own coal and stop blowing up coal power generators because they are ‘old’. Hazelwood (1971-2017) only 46 years old was at 98% of capacity when shut down. So it was not shut down because it was not fully functional. 1.6GW gone from the grid in a day. And required no new power lines. If we had upgraded it, we could have halved the CO2 output which would be vastly more effective than what is happening by using gas we don’t have. So all that coal is just sitting there. Which would make China happy especially as we buy their windmills and transmission lines. It redefines stupidity. Who needs nuclear?
China opened 50 new Coal fired power plants last year. No one seems to care. Certainly not the Greens.
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But it is amusing to see the Greens fight coal and nuclear at the same time. Ultimately that’s the choice for Australia, not windmills which, face it, don’t work.
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How many devices you buy would suffer from a) random operation or completely useless for days, even weeks at a time. b) only worked half the day at best. That’s wind and solar.
Imagine a car or aircraft or computer or toaster or vacuum cleaner or elevator or train which suffered from these obvious serious faults?
You would return them and ask for your money back. Can we return the windmills? Along with 30,000km of otherwise usless transmission lines?
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They would rightly be called “lemons”.
Legally you would return them to the seller and get a refund as not fit for purpose.
There’s nothing different with unreliables…they are not fit for purpose.
Fat chance of that getting through some of our politicians skulls.
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