Scottish Wind Delivers Equivalent Of 98% Of Country’s October Electricity Demand


wind turbines in scotland

CSA Z463 Electrical Maintenance

Our customized live online or in‑person group training can be delivered to your staff at your location.

  • Live Online
  • 6 hours Instructor-led
  • Group Training Available
Regular Price:
$249
Coupon Price:
$199
Reserve Your Seat Today

Scotland Wind Energy October saw renewables supply the equivalent of 98 percent of electricity demand, as onshore wind outpaced National Grid needs, cutting emissions and powering households, per WWF Scotland and WeatherEnergy.

 

Key Points

A monthly update showing Scottish onshore wind met the equivalent of 98% of electricity demand in October.

✅ 98% of monthly electricity demand equivalent met by wind

✅ 16 days exceeded total national demand, per data

✅ WWF Scotland and WeatherEnergy cited; lower emissions

 

New figures publicized by WWF Scotland have revealed that wind energy generated the equivalent of 98% of the country’s electricity demand in October, or enough electricity to power millions of Scottish homes across the country.

Scotland has regularly been highlighted as a global wind energy leader, and over the last few years has repeatedly reported record-breaking months for wind generation. Now, it’s all very well and good to say that Scottish wind delivered 98% of the country’s electricity demand, but the specifics are a little different — hence why WWF Scotland always refers to it as wind providing “the equivalent of 98%” of Scotland’s electricity demand. That’s why it’s worth looking at the statistics provided by WWF Scotland, sourced from WeatherEnergy, part of the European EnergizAIR project:

  • National Grid demand for the month – 1,850,512 MWh
  • What % of this could have been provided by wind power across Scotland – 98%
  • Best day – 23rd October 2018, generation was 105,900.94 MWh, powering 8.72m homes, 356% of households. Demand that day was 45,274.5MWh – wind generation was 234% of that.
  • Worst day – 18th October 2018 when generation was 18,377.71MWh powering 1,512,568 homes, 62% of households. Demand that day was 73,628.5MWh – wind generation was 25%
  • How many days generation was over 100% of households – 27
  • How many days generation was over 100% of demand – 16

“What a month October proved to be, with wind powering on average 98 per cent of Scotland’s entire electricity demand for the month, at a time when wind became the UK’s main power source and exceeding our total demand for a staggering 16 out of 31 days,” said Dr Sam Gardner, acting director at WWF Scotland.

“These figures clearly show wind is working, it’s helping reduce our emissions and is the lowest cost form of new power generation. It’s also popular, with a recent survey also showing more and more people support turbines in rural areas. That’s why it’s essential that the UK Government unlocks market access for onshore wind at a time when we need to be scaling up electrification of heat and transport.”

Alex Wilcox Brooke, Weather Energy Project Manager at Severn Wye Energy Agency, added: “Octobers figures are a prime example of how reliable & consistent wind production can be, with production on 16 days outstripping national demand.”

 

Related News

Related News

Texas utilities struggle to restore power as Harvey hampers progress

Texas Gulf Coast Power Outages from Harvey continue as flooding, high winds, and downed lines paralyze Houston and coastal utilities, while restoration crews from out-of-state work to repair infrastructure and restore electricity across impacted communities.

 

Key Points

Power disruptions across Houston and the Gulf Coast from Harvey, driven by flooding, wind damage, and blocked access.

✅ CenterPoint warns multi-day outages in flooded zones.

✅ AEP Texas aided by crews from Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri.

✅ Entergy expects more outages as storm nears Galveston.

 

Hundreds of thousands of Texans were without power along the Gulf Coast as Tropical Storm Harvey left parts of the Houston area under water, with extended Houston outages compounding response efforts.

There were roughly 280,000 customers without power along the Texas's coast and in Houston and the surrounding areas on Monday, according to reported outages by the state's investor-owned utilities. Harvey, which made landfall on Friday, caused devastating flooding and knocked out power lines along its destructive path, similar to the Louisiana grid rebuild after Laura that required weeks of restoration.

CenterPoint Energy reported more than 100,000 outages earlier on Monday, though that figure was down to 91,744 shortly after 1 p.m. on Monday.

The company said it was unable to access hard-hit areas until floodwaters recede and electric infrastructure dries out, a challenge that, as seen in Florida power restoration efforts elsewhere, has taken weeks to resolve. Outages in the most flooded areas could last for several days, CenterPoint warned.

AEP Texas's coverage area south of Houston had 150,500 customers without electricity as of 11 a.m. ET on Monday. That was down from the peak of its outages on Saturday afternoon, which affected 220,000 customers.

Former FEMA deputy director: Texas has already begun recovery from storm  1:54 PM ET Mon, 28 Aug 2017 | 05:57

Corpus Christi and the surrounding areas along the Gulf Coast were still experiencing the most outages, while persistent Toronto outages after a spring storm underscored how long recovery can take in urban areas. AEP credited assistance from out-of-state workers for helping to get the lights back on.

"Thousands of resources have arrived from across the country to help AEP Texas with restoration efforts following this historic weather event. Crews from Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri and other states have arrived and are working on restoring power to those impacted by Hurricane Harvey," AEP said in a statement.

Entergy reported 29,500 customers were without power on Monday in areas north of Houston. The company warned that additional outages were expected if Harvey moves inland near the island city of Galveston on Wednesday as anticipated, a pattern similar to New Orleans during Ida where electricity failed despite levees holding.

Houston, Beaumont and Victoria are expected to see continued periods of torrential rain through Tuesday, before Harvey begins to move north on Wednesday and out of the flood zone by Thursday.

"Our crews are safely restoring power as quickly as possible, but the continued wind, rain and flooding are having an impact on restoration efforts," Entergy said in a statement.

South of Houston, about 7,500 Texas New Mexico Power Company customers were still experiencing outages, according to the company's outage map.

 

Related News

View more

Turkish powership to generate electricity from LNG in Senegal

Karpowership LNG powership in Senegal will supply 15% of the grid, a 235 MW floating power plant bound for Dakar, enabling fast deployment, base-load electricity, and cleaner natural gas generation for West Africa.

 

Key Points

A 235 MW floating plant supplying 15% of Senegal's grid with fast, reliable, lower-emission LNG electricity.

✅ 235 MW LNG-ready floating plant meets 15% of Senegal's demand

✅ Rapid deployment: commercial operations expected early October

✅ Cleaner natural gas conversion planned after six months

 

Turkey's Karpowership company, the designer and builder of the world's first floating power plants and the global brand of Karadeniz Holding, will meet 15% of Senegal's electricity needs from liquefied natural gas (LNG) with the 235-megawatt (MW) powership Ayşegül Sultan, which started its voyage from Turkey to Senegal, where an African Development Bank review of a coal plant is underway, on Sunday.

Karpowership, operating 22 floating power plants in more than 10 countries around the world, where France's first offshore wind turbine is now producing electricity, has invested over $5 billion in this area.

In a statement to members of the press at Karmarine Shipyard, Karpowership Trade Group Chair Zeynep Harezi said they aimed to provide affordable electricity to countries in need of electricity quickly and reliably, as projects like the Egypt-Saudi power link expand regional grids, adding that they could commission energy ships capable of generating the base electric charge of the countries, as tidal power in Nova Scotia begins supplying the grid, in a period of about a month.

Harezi recalled that Karpowership commissioned the first floating energy ship in 2007 in Iraq, followed by Lebanon, Ghana, Indonesia, Mozambique, Zambia, Gambia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Cuba, Guinea Bissau and Senegal, while Scottish tidal power demonstrates marine potential as well. "We meet the electricity needs of 34 million people in many countries," she stressed. Harezi stated that the energy ships, all designed and produced by Turkish engineers, use liquid fuel, but all ships can covert to the second fuel.

Considering the impact of electricity production on the environment, Harezi noted that they plan to convert the entire fleet from liquid fuel to natural gas, with complementary approaches like power-to-gas in Europe helping integrate renewables. "With a capacity of 480 megawatts each, the world's largest floating energy vessels operate in Indonesia and Ghana. The conversion to gas has been completed in our project in Indonesia. We have also initiated the conversion of the Ghana vessel into gas," she said.

Harezi explained that they would continue to convert their fleets to natural gas in the coming period. "Our 235-MW floating electric vessel, the Ayşegül Sultan, sets sail today to meet 15% of Senegal's electricity needs on its own. After an approximately 20-day cruise, the vessel will reach Dakar, the capital of Senegal, and will begin commercial operation in early October," Harezi continued. "We plan to use liquid fuel as bridging fuel in the first six months. At the end of the first six months, we will start to produce electricity from LNG on our ship. Thus, Ayşegül Sultan will be the first project to generate electricity from LNG in Africa, while the world's most powerful tidal turbine is delivering power to the grid, officials said. Our floating power plant to be sent to Mozambique is designed to generate electricity from LNG. It is also scheduled to start operations in the next year."

 

Related News

View more

With New Distributed Energy Rebate, Illinois Could Challenge New York in Utility Innovation

Illinois NextGrid redefines utility, customer, and provider roles with grid modernization, DER valuation, upfront rebates, net metering reform, and non-wires alternatives, leveraging rooftop solar, batteries, and performance signals to enhance reliability and efficiency.

 

Key Points

Illinois NextGrid is an ICC roadmap to value DER and modernize the grid with rebates and non-wires solutions.

✅ Upfront Value-of-DER rebates reward location, time, and performance.

✅ Locational DER reduce peak demand and defer wires and substations.

✅ Encourages non-wires alternatives and data-driven utility planning.

 

How does the electric utility fit in to a rapidly-evolving energy system? That’s what the Illinois Commerce Commission is trying to determine with its new effort, "NextGrid". Together, we’re rethinking the roles of the utility, the customer, and energy solution providers in a 21st-century digital grid landscape.

In some ways, NextGrid will follow in the footsteps of New York’s innovative Reforming the Energy Vision process, a multi-year effort to re-examine how electric utilities and customers interact. A new approach is essential to accelerating the adoption of clean energy technologies and building a smarter electricity infrastructure in the state.

Like REV, NextGrid is gaining national attention for stakeholder-driven processes to reveal new ways to value distributed energy resources (DER), like rooftop solar and batteries. New York and Illinois’ efforts also seek alternatives, such as virtual power plants, to simply building more and more wires, poles, and power plants to meet the energy needs of tomorrow.

Yet, Illinois is may go a few steps beyond New York, creating a comprehensive framework for utilities to measure how DER are making the grid smarter and more efficient. Here is what we know will happen so far.

On Wednesday, April 5, at the second annual Grid Modernization Forum in Chicago, I’ll be discussing why these provisions could change the future of our energy system, including insights on grid modernization affordability for stakeholders.

 

Value of distributed energy

The Illinois Commerce Commission’s NextGrid plans grew out of the recently-passed future energy jobs act, a landmark piece of climate and energy policy that was widely heralded as a bipartisan oddity in the age of Trump. The Future Energy Jobs Act will provide significant new investments in renewables and energy efficiency over the next 13 years, redefine the role and value of rooftop solar and batteries on the grid, and lead to significant greenhouse gas emission reductions.

NextGrid will likely start laying the groundwork for valuing distributed energy resources (DER) as envisioned by the Future Energy Jobs Act, which introduces the concept of a new rebate. Illinois currently has a net metering policy, which lets people with solar panels sell their unused solar energy back to the grid to offset their electric bill. Yet the net metering policy had an arbitrary “cap,” or a certain level after which homes and businesses adding solar panels would no longer be able to benefit from net metering.

Although Illinois is still a few years away from meeting that previous “cap,” when it does hit that level, the new policy will ensure additional DER will still be rewarded. Under the new plan, the Value-of-DER rebate will replace net metering on the distribution portion of a customer’s bill (the charge for delivering electricity from the local substation to your house) with an upfront payment, which credits the customer for the value their solar provides to the local grid over the system’s life. Net metering for the energy supply portion of the bill would remain – i.e. homes and businesses would still be able to offset a significant portion of their electric bills by selling excess energy.

What is unique about Illinois’ approach is that the rebate is an upfront payment, rather than on ongoing tariff or reduced net metering compensation, for example. By allowing customers to get paid for the value solar provides to the system at the time it is installed, in the same way new wires, poles, and transformers would, this upfront payment positions DER investments as equally or more beneficial to customers and the electric grid. This is a huge step not only for regulators, but for utilities as well, as they begin to see distributed energy as an asset to the system.

This is a huge step for utilities, as they begin to see distributed energy as an asset to the system.

The rebate would also factor-in the variables of location, time, and performance of DER in the rebate formula, allowing for a more precise calculation of the value to the grid. Peak electricity demand can stress the local grid, causing wear and tear and failure of the equipment that serve our homes and businesses. Power from DER during peak times and in certain areas can alleviate those stresses, therefore providing a greater value than during times of average demand.

In addition, factoring-in the value of performance will take into account the other functions of distributed energy that help keep the lights on. For example, batteries and advanced inverters can provide support for helping avoid voltage fluctuations that can cause outages and other costs to customers.

 

Related News

View more

Berlin urged to remove barriers to PV

Germany Solar Cap Removal would accelerate photovoltaics, storage, and renewables, replacing coal and nuclear during phaseout with 10GW per year toward 162GW by 2030, boosting grid resilience, O&M jobs, and domestic clean energy growth.

 

Key Points

A policy change to scrap the 52GW limit, enabling 10GW/year PV and storage to replace coal and nuclear capacity.

✅ Scrap 52GW cap to prevent post-2020 market slump

✅ Add 10GW PV annually; scale residential, commercial, grid storage

✅ Create jobs in planning, installation, and O&M through 2030

 

The German Solar Association (BSW) has called on the government to remove barriers to the development of new solar power capacity in Germany and storage capacity needed to replace coal and nuclear generation that is being phased out.

A 52GW cap should be scrapped, otherwise there is a risk that a market slump will occur in the solar industry after 2020, BSW said, especially as U.S. solar expansion plans signal accelerating global demand.

BSW managing director Carsten Körnig said: “Time is running out, and further delays are irresponsible. The 52GW mark will already be reached within a few months.”
A new report from BSW, in cooperation with Bonn-based marketing and social research company EuPD Research and The smarter E Europe initiative, said 10GW a year is needed as well as an increase in battery storage capacity.

This would lead to cumulative photovoltaic capacity of 162GW and 15GW residential, commercial and grid storage systems by 2030, in line with global renewable records being set, leading to new job opportunities.

The number of jobs in the domestic photovoltaic and storage industries could increase to 78,000 by the end of the next decade from today’s level of 26,400, aligning with forecasts of wind and solar reaching 50% by mid-century, said 'The Energy Transition in the Context of the Nuclear and Coal Phaseout – Perspectives in the Electricity Market to 2040' study.

Job growth would take place for the most part in the fields of planning, installation and operations and maintenance of PV systems, as solar uptake in Poland increases, the report said.

In maintenance alone, employment would increase from 9,200 to 26,000, with additional opened up by tapping into the market potential of medium- to long-term storage systems, alongside changing electricity prices in Northern Europe that favor flexibility, it said.

The report added that industry revenue could grow from €5bn to €12.5bn in the coming decade.

The report was supported by BayWa Re E3/DC, Fronius, Goldbeck Solar, IBC Solar, Panasonic, Sharp, Siemens, Sonnen, Suntech, Tesvolt and Varta.

 

Related News

View more

US January power generation jumps 9.3% on year: EIA

US January power generation climbed to 373.2 TWh, EIA data shows, with coal edging natural gas, record wind output, record nuclear generation, rising hydro, and stable utility-scale solar amid higher Henry Hub prices.

 

Key Points

US January power generation hit 373.2 TWh; coal led gas, wind and nuclear set records, with solar edging higher.

✅ Coal 31.8% share; gas 29.4%; coal output 118.7 TWh, gas 109.6 TWh.

✅ Wind hit record 26.8 TWh; nuclear record 74.6 TWh.

✅ Total generation 373.2 TWh, highest January since 2014.

 

The US generated 373.2 TWh of power in January, up 7.9% from 345.9 TWh in December and 9.3% higher than the same month in 2017, Energy Information Administration data shows.

The monthly total was the highest amount in January since 377.3 TWh was generated in January 2014.

Coal generation totaled 118.7 TWh in January, up 11.4% from 106.58 TWh in December and up 2.8% from the year-ago month, consistent with projections of a coal-fired generation increase for the first time since 2014. It was also the highest amount generated in January since 132.4 TWh in 2015.

For the second straight month, more power was generated from coal than natural gas, as 109.6 TWh came from gas, up 3.3% from 106.14 TWh in December and up 19.9% on the year.

However, the 118.7 TWh generated from coal was down 9.6% from the five-year average for the month, due to the higher usage of gas and renewables and a rising share of non-fossil generation in the overall mix.

#google#

Coal made up 31.8% of the total US power generation in January, up from 30.8% in December but down from 33.8% in January 2017.

Gas` generation share was at 29.4% in the latest month, with momentum from record gas-fired electricity earlier in the period, down from 30.7% in December but up from 26.8% in the year-ago month.

In January, the NYMEX Henry Hub gas futures price averaged $3.16/MMBtu, up 13.9% from $2.78/MMBtu averaged in December but down 4% from $3.29/MMBtu averaged in the year-ago month.

 

WIND, NUCLEAR GENERATION AT RECORD HIGHS

Wind generation was at a record-high 26.8 TWh in January, up 29.3% from 22.8 TWh in December and the highest amount on record, according to EIA data going back to January 2001. Wind generated 7.2% of the nation`s power in January, as an EIA summer outlook anticipates larger wind and solar contributions, up from 6.6% in December and 6.1% in the year-ago month.

Utility-scale solar generated 3.3 TWh in January, up 1.3% from 3.1 TWh in December and up 51.6% on the year. In January, utility-scale solar generation made up 0.9% of US power generation, during a period when solar and wind supplied 10% of US electricity in early 2018, flat from December but up from 0.6% in January 2017.

Nuclear generation was also at a record-high 74.6 TWh in January, up 1.3% month on month and the highest monthly total since the EIA started tracking it in January 2001, eclipsing the previous record of 74.3 TWh set in July 2008. Nuclear generation made up 20% of the US power in January, down from 21.3% in December and 21.4% in the year-ago month.

Hydro power totaled 25.4 TWh in January, making up 6.8% of US power generation during the month, up from 6.5% in December but down from 8.2% in January 2017.

 

Related News

View more

IEA: Asia set to use half of world's electricity by 2025

Asia Electricity Consumption 2025 highlights an IEA forecast of surging global power demand led by China, lagging access in Africa, rising renewables and nuclear output, stable emissions, and weather-dependent grids needing flexibility and electrification.

 

Key Points

An IEA forecast that Asia will use half of global power by 2025, led by China, as renewables and nuclear drive supply.

✅ Asia to use half of global electricity; China leads growth

✅ Africa just 3% consumption despite rapid population growth

✅ Renewables, nuclear expand; grids must boost flexibility

 

Asia will for the first time use half of the world’s electricity by 2025, even as global power demand keeps rising and Africa continues to consume far less than its share of the global population, according to a new forecast released Wednesday by the International Energy Agency.

Much of Asia’s electricity use will be in China, a nation of 1.4 billion people whose China's electricity sector is seeing shifts as its share of global consumption will rise from a quarter in 2015 to a third by the middle of this decade, the Paris-based body said.

“China will be consuming more electricity than the European Union, United States and India combined,” said Keisuke Sadamori, the IEA’s director of energy markets and security.

By contrast, Africa — home to almost a fifth of world’s nearly 8 billion inhabitants — will account for just 3% of global electricity consumption in 2025.

“This and the rapidly growing population mean there is still a massive need for increased electrification in Africa,” said Sadamori.

The IEA’s annual report predicts that low-emissions sources will account for much of the growth in global electricity supply over the coming three years, including nuclear power and renewables such as wind and solar. This will prevent a significant rise in greenhouse gas emissions from the power sector, it said.

Scientists say sharp cuts in all sources of emissions are needed as soon as possible to keep average global temperatures from rising 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels. That target, laid down in the 2015 Paris climate accord, appears increasingly doubtful as temperatures have already increased by more than 1.1 C since the reference period.

One hope for meeting the goal is a wholesale shift away from fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil toward low-carbon sources of energy. But while some regions are reducing their use of coal and gas for electricity production, in others, soaring electricity and coal use are increasing, the IEA said.

The 134-page also report warned that surging electricity demand and supply are becoming increasingly weather dependent, a problem it urged policymakers to address.

“In addition to drought in Europe, there were heat waves in India (last year),” said Sadamori. “Similarly, central and eastern China were hit by heatwaves and drought. The United States, where electricity sales projections continue to fall, also saw severe winter storms in December, and all those events put massive strain on the power systems of these regions.”

“As the clean energy transition gathers pace, the impact of weather events on electricity demand will intensify due to the increased electrification of heating, while the share of weather-dependent renewables poised to eclipse coal will continue to grow in the generation mix,” the IEA said. “In such a world, increasing the flexibility of power systems while ensuring security of supply and resilience of networks will be crucial.”

 

Related News

View more

Sign Up for Electricity Forum’s Newsletter

Stay informed with our FREE Newsletter — get the latest news, breakthrough technologies, and expert insights, delivered straight to your inbox.

Electricity Today T&D Magazine Subscribe for FREE

Stay informed with the latest T&D policies and technologies.
  • Timely insights from industry experts
  • Practical solutions T&D engineers
  • Free access to every issue

Live Online & In-person Group Training

Advantages To Instructor-Led Training – Instructor-Led Course, Customized Training, Multiple Locations, Economical, CEU Credits, Course Discounts.

Request For Quotation

Whether you would prefer Live Online or In-Person instruction, our electrical training courses can be tailored to meet your company's specific requirements and delivered to your employees in one location or at various locations.