Getting ready to test some Electric Equipment this Spring Semester with the Ag Dept folks at school. So I have toured through some of the olde(r) threads on here to see how views, predictions, etc., have played out. I do see some older "mis" information. Below are the typical genres.
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One area of common mis-information is:
Texas Winter Storm URI (Feb 2021)
Fail Rates:
Natural Gas = 40% FAIL.
Coal = 30% FAIL.
Nukes = 25% FAIL.
(Meanwhile Solar PV jumped UP. PV produces more when Cold, and Reflected Light from Snow increased production). So now Texas has built a LOT more Solar PV and is now leading the US in Solar PV.
Back in 2021, Governor Abbott and his Frack Gas buddies looked at the numbers, and that is when the Lies started. Wind was not even slated for much to fail from. Winter and Summer are our "slow" Wind times. We plan Big Wind for Spring, Fall, and more at night than day.
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Some of the other update information on "EVs are going to Eat the Grid!" (now the same game with Data Centers and AI -- same bs, different decade). So far in the US the EV load numbers are coming out negative on the overall US Grid. This is because so many folks who get EVs also get small Solar PV for their house, and mostly charge at home. While that cancels out that EV, it also generally takes the entire house load off the Grid, which is much larger than the EV load, and is cancelling out the rest of the EVs.
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Fragile Grid Myth: "The Grid is (always sometime somewhere) About to Fail!"
Thing to understand is called Service Life. Everything on the Grid has a Service Life. Typically 25 to 50 years. And then it is mostly replaced. The concrete in dams and foundations tend to last longer -- but most everything else is about 25 to 50 years and less. This is not new information. This is used as part of routine service planning. When there is a Fire, Tornado, Hurricane, etc. damaged sections are replaced early. But overall, if you use the inverse math of 25 to 50 years, that means about 2 to 4% of everything is replaced and upgraded every year. If there is some growth in an area, we add for that.
And when it is replaced, we use the newest and best available at the time. But in 25 to 50 years, it will all be due for replacement again. It is happening all the time all around you. If you do not notice us -- it means we are doing a good job, all in the background. You may see some if you want to get up about 6 AM on a Sunday morning for stringing new lines across a highway. Usually traffic stops to ensure safety, and then by church time, we are out of there.
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Batteries, Batteries, Batteries.
On our test equipment, we are not even using batteries for much other than an option to move equipment to and from the field. At the field(s), cords and line-power take over and we just run from line power -- like Mines have done since the 1940s and before. Or Center Pivots (also all Electric) since the 1970s.
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Silicon Solar PV. Has turned out to be the Cheapest, Fastest, Cleanest and Lowest Risk new generation, EVER. So that is mostly what folks are building now. Coal is dying out, Nukes barely holding on, and with the drop in New Gas plants, it will follow along behind.
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The Gubbermint is agonna makes US buy EVs. AKA, the "EV Mandate Myth." That one was make-believe from the start. Some cities with High Air Pollution want folks to quit crapping into the Air, but that was about it. This myth was made up and promoted to play to the reactionary arrogance and ignorance of "you can't tell me!" folks.
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Meanwhile the Amish are still using horses and doing fine.
Nice load of B*
