Challenges of implementing wind energy into the grid

Wind energy has been a remarkable success story in terms of establishing itself as a mainstream energy resource. Its growth seems certain to continue and that it will be an increasingly valuable source of electricity generation in the future. This should not close our eyes to its deficiencies.

There has been a great deal of debate in recent years about various technical aspects of wind energy. New information about the power delivery and environmental parameters of wind power is constantly becoming available and it raises a number of important questions.

Demands for power vary greatly during the day and night, and they vary considerably from season to season. In many countries the highest peaks are usually found during cold periods in the winter, but in other countries during summer daylight hours when air conditioners are running.

Energy demand also varies by time of day, with peaks typically at the start and end of the working day. At night time the load is lowest, mainly for industry running non-stop, public lighting and stand by use by electric appliances.

Electricitysupply systems cope with this variation in demand with three type of power supply; base load, intermediate load and peak load. An ‘optimal’ system is one which has the most efficient combination of different types of power plant to meet these needs.

Intermittency or variability exists when a generator cannot control the supply of resources, notably wind and sun. The variable nature of power generation from intermittent sources has raised concerns about the ability of electricity grids to absorb intermittent power.

Because of these characteristics of Wind Energy, grid operators and other energy generators need to closely monitor both the demand and supply sides of their networks and balance this at times when there is variability in supply from wind energy.



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