this post was submitted on 26 Aug 2024
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There’s a huge difference between day/night storage which is sufficient for most locations in the world that are somewhat closer to the equator, and seasonal storage. We have no good solution for seasonal storage at the moment.
Exactly. Day/night storage can probably be met (at least partially) by using EVs (i.e. arrive at work empty, recharge from solar, arrive at home full). But that's not going to be enough to get through the winter in higher latitudes.
That's why we need a reliable base load, and natural gas is very attractive because it's:
Battery storage is prohibitively expensive in many parts of the world, and there aren't very many ready alternatives. I think we should be investing in nuclear power instead of utility grade battery backups, and we should be looking at EVs to help even out the day/night cycle.
Hydro is a good option for this, if you have a big enough lake. It can ramp up and down very fast, meaning it's great for filling in gaps between other renewables.