Undemocratic nature of the energy transition.
The vast majority of people believe that climate change is real and that we should do something about it. Unfortunately, a majority of these same people do not want to spend any additional money out of their pocket on combatting climate change.
While this naivete appears stupid, we shouldn’t be surprised. The media has continuously bombarded us with solar and wind are the cheapest energy sources anywhere. Well, if it is cheaper and it also combats climate change, full steam ahead.
Problem is that the cost of an intermittent non-dispatchable electron from wind and solar is pretty much irrelevant. You can’t operate a grid with only these generation sources. To have solar and wind requires a lot of additional cost and support that is ignored when their “cheap” virtues are extolled.
Well, reality may have finally hit, at least for the residents of Connecticut. In two articles today in energycentral.com, the people of Connecticut are expressing their discontent at the cost of electricity and the opaque nature that the state contracts with renewables.
The Connecticut state legislature is demanding that renewable power purchase contracts, most specifically wind, are made public and the full cost details are provided before the state can commit the tax payers to the expense.
Quoting from the article:
“Record July heat and a reversal in wholesale energy prices combined to create a spike in consumer electric bills. That touched off protests and the inevitable political maneuvering that is shaping up as a November election issue.”
You can read both articles here: