Wyoming and Kansas Report Wind Energy Collapsed During Cold Wave
Lee Boughey, a spokesperson for Tri-State Electric Generation and Transmission Association, said the nonprofit, which provides power to eight electric cooperatives across Wyoming, planned for the impacts of the storm as it approached.
They anticipated higher demand from member utilities in Colorado, Nebraska and Wyoming, and Tri-State prepared for wind energy resources to decline.
For safety, during extremely high winds, wind turbines will stop running and feather their blades. Icing also can cause turbines to stop running.
According to energy mix data from the Southwest Power Pool, as the storm began to move through Wyoming on Dec. 23, at 3 p.m., wind energy resources began to drop. Within 24 hours, wind energy resources were about 25 percent what they were prior to the storm.
They didn’t begin to rise again until Christmas morning.
To compensate for the decline in wind energy, Tri-State turned to its ‘fossil fuel’ and hydroelectric resources to keep the lights on.
Kansas Reports In
- About 17,000 was provided by wind energy,
- About 28,000 were provided by coal and natural gas, and,
- About 2,000 were provided by nuclear.” [there are few nuclear plants in the region]
- Nuclear energy provided 2,000 megawatts,
- Coal and natural gas provided 27,585, and
- Wind energy provided just 3,061.
We were able to keep the lights on over Christmas weekend only because we had nuclear and ‘fossil fuels’.
My Conclusion
As far as I’m concerned, if we never install another utility-grid wind turbine, that’s fine.
That is not the case with wind. It fails when the wind is too light, too strong and — because it is quite complicated mechanically — it fails too often because it just breaks.
Wind energy has received tax subsidies since the Carter Administration — really! — and it still frequently fails. The tax subsidy should stop.
See more here mikesmithenterprisesblog.com
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Tom
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That’s the plan as the global green knuckleheads prepare us for caveman living.
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Jerry Krause
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Hi PSI Readers,
Take some time and exert some effort to view the wind data (http://weather.uwyo.edu/upperair/sounding.html) at and near the surface in the area referred to in this article. And this variability was known before one wind turbine was erected.
Hydro-electric power can be used, when available, can be used to smooth this variability. I have not studied what is available in this region but I am sure there must be some and there is no mention of it in this article.
Have a good day, Jerry
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T. C. Clark
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A dam in California is being torn down….hurts the environment according to the dictatorship in California. It all goes back to CO2….either it is a problem or not…that question must be answered in order to stop the stupid actions being taken to”save the planet” from that black evil carbon element that is trying to kill all life everywhere.
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Phil Inman
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I am repeating a comment I read recently. That being “Why even mention Carbon Free or any such make believe environmental nonsense.?” We little humans are responsible for such a tiny bit of Carbon Dioxide it is hardly detectable. Coal, gas, oil, all good. Nuclear? better except for regulations. Wood? We probably have better things to do with most of that wood. Wind? un reliable, expensive, and ugly as hell. Solar Ditto. I’m not interested in any tax dollars sustaining a technology just cuz some day it might be better. If it is more expensive than coal, get rid of it til it does become competitive. Please.
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