100% RE electricity this morning.

[Ken]

We have well and truly reached Net 100% RE this morning
.
The wind curtailment is more than the gas production and then we are exporting another max 7.5GW

https://bmrs.elexon.co.uk/interconnector-flows
https://wind-curtailment-app-ahq7fucdyq-lz.a.run.app/
https://bmrs.elexon.co.uk/generation-by-fuel-type

[Moxi]

That is truly impressive and worth a storm in August to achieve

For such monumental news I wonder how much reporting it will receive from the press and the TV ? It is after all an excellent newsworthy article and a way to promote and celebrate renewable energy production - but will they deem it newsworthy ?

It does bode well for the shoulder months and more of the winter demand should be covered by renewables.

Moxi

[AE-NMidlands]

Screenshot 2024-08-22 at 08-46-53 GB Fuel type power generation production.png (33.32 KiB) Viewed 531 times

says 3.1 GW gas, exporting 1.57 GW... I don't think it's right to say curtailment means we are 100% renewables net, just that we could have been if we had invested in more storage or interconnectors.
A

[dan_b]

Certainly a lot of wind now

[Moxi]

Its a mute point - the grid isn't yet ready for no spinning reserve from Gas but at the same time the public really does need to know that the country was in a position to be powered from 100% renewables - this is where the news reporting would help if they could be trusted to give the facts and no hyperbole.

If we don't celebrate the potential then the great general public will remain ill informed. Even if the press reproduced your bar chart and said that the Gas generation was there as a fast response mechanism for grid fluctuations because alternate renewable fast reaction systems have not yet been deployed at grid scale that would show that renewables can do the job and that there's still a bit more effort to get to the renewables only goal.

Perfection is the enemy of progress.

Moxi

[dan_b]

Worth remembering that National Grid is working towards enabling the grid to operate 100% renewables when conditions allow in 2025 - so only a year away.

[nowty]

We have been in this position dozens of times in the past and although the carbon intensity is pretty low its not record breaking.

It is progress though, the current carbon intensity would have been record breaking around 2 or more years ago.

[dan_b]

Wonder why there isn't a "free power hour" session today given the curtailment - although the overall lack of solar and it's daytime peak might explain it?

My import tariff is down to 13p/kWh today on Octopus Flexible.

[Mart]

Its a mute point - the grid isn't yet ready for no spinning reserve from Gas but at the same time the public really does need to know that the country was in a position to be powered from 100% renewables - this is where the news reporting would help if they could be trusted to give the facts and no hyperbole.

If we don't celebrate the potential then the great general public will remain ill informed. Even if the press reproduced your bar chart and said that the Gas generation was there as a fast response mechanism for grid fluctuations because alternate renewable fast reaction systems have not yet been deployed at grid scale that would show that renewables can do the job and that there's still a bit more effort to get to the renewables only goal.

Perfection is the enemy of progress.

Moxi

100% agree.

Nothing is finished, we are still rolling out huge amounts of RE and storage, and interconnectors, and general grid upgrades. The pieces won't all be in place till probably 2040 and still growing/developing as we learn how to operate the new norm to the best.

So we celebrate the good times, the milestones (even when repeated), and all of the potential such as curtailments since there are solutions - or at the very least plans for economic levels of curtailment, not entirely dissimilar to operating a FF generation plant at lower capacity levels when necessary.

[nowty]

Wonder why there isn't a "free power hour" session today given the curtailment - although the overall lack of solar and it's daytime peak might explain it?

My import tariff is down to 13p/kWh today on Octopus Flexible.

I was expecting one, the agile import tariff is negative today at the normal power hour time. I shall look later to see what the live spot prices were at 1pm to 2pm slot.