I have just read this article, published yesterday. Interesting, but I am not sure how successful a solar power facility would be up here given our less than favourable weather .. hmm....
"Proposals for the first solar farm to provide affordable green energy to residents and businesses on the Isle of Man and begin the decarbonisation of electricity generation on the Island launches today (20 Oct).
The plans for the Billown Solar Farm in Malew, near Castletown are being put forward by Peel Cubico Renewables (PCR) and support the Isle of Man Government to realise its Climate Change Plan and its commitment for the electricity sector to be 100% green by 2030.
The plans would help to provide long-term stability and independence for the Isle of Man’s energy supply with less reliance on and exposure to volatile oil and gas prices.
It would also generate enough power to meet more than 5% of the Isle of Man’s current electricity demand.
Island residents are being asked for their views on the new facility which would be built on 84 acres of agricultural land to the west of Malew Road (A3) and south of Douglas Road (A7) with a capacity around 26MW – enough to power up to 7,700 homes per year, almost 20% of homes on the Island.
An onsite substation is included in the plans which would connect to a nearby grid network. A battery storage facility would also store electricity generated during periods of low demand and re-distribute it to the grid when demand is high, or the network is down.
The project represents an investment of around £30m across the 40-year anticipated life of the project, at no cost to the public finances.
It would offset at least 11,000 tonnes of carbon – the equivalent of approximately 6,500 fewer car journeys per year.
PCR is a joint venture formed a year ago between natural resources and energy business Peel NRE (part of Peel L&P) and Cubico Sustainable Investments, one of the world’s largest privately-owned renewable energy companies."
(Nathan Spencer. Director, Built Environment Networking)
I have seen similar solar panels in Austria. It would be amazing if it happened. We all need to find new ways to make energy. I have never been a fan of nuclear power. Will you be investing in a electric car if the solar power infrastructure happens?
ReplyDeleteDon't think so. Shanks' pony or bus for us, Dave.
DeleteI am in the centre of Canada. Solar panels would only work three months or maybe four months of the year. The res of the time, the sun is too low, it is cloudy or the panels would have to be cleaned off daily of snow or ice.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure we would get enough sun here either, but I am no expert.
DeleteI'm all for solar power but I have questions. It is a relatively large sum of money for a small tentative step into renewable energy. 30m to provide 5% of the energy needed to supply the Isle of Man (although elsewhere it says it would supply electricity to 20% of the island's homes. Given that you live on an island, wouldn't wind generation be a more efficient way to 'go green'? Energy can also be generated by the ocean waves. I guess I'd have some real questions here. There is nothing more important than reducing our dependence on oil. This reliance gives world power to some horrible governments. The move needs to be well thought out, or it simply gives all the naysayers ammunition for their argument that green energy doesn't work. PS: My son and his wife have a hybrid that they like very much. When they replace my son's vehicle it will be with another hybrid. My daughter and her husband bought an electric car over the summer and will have it before Christmas.
ReplyDeleteI really hope that this doesn't turn out to be a huge con to part our Treasury from a bundle of taxpayers' money.
DeleteI wonder about these things. In Yorkshire, a company wants to build on the biggest solar farm in the country on grade 1 land currently used for growing food. It happens to give easy access to the National Grid cables near Drax power station.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to know if it is a good thing or just a sneaky way to make a profit somehow.
DeleteHopefully it will be well considered before money is spent on something that might prove to be ineffective. I'm not sure if you have to rely totally on the sun or if daylight is sufficient to give some power to the panels.
ReplyDeleteI'm currently looking into having solar panels fitted, but obviously living in Spain we are guaranteed a fair amount of sun! I already have solar outdoor lights, which are most effective, and intend to change the rest of the outdoor ones in due course. I'll probably be visible from space by the time I'm finished!
All our streetlights locally are solar powered too, so they must make some saving in public spending.
Our Government has been caught out before. I hope this time it is genuine.
DeleteCreate a wind farm on Snaefell and then you might not need a pesky solar farm.
ReplyDeleteWe certainly get more wind than sun.
DeleteWhat a pity you can't harness all the hot air that's coming out of Parliament!
DeleteA never ending supply.
DeleteWe worry about good farmland being taken out of production for this and wonder if the same number of panels couldnt be put on existing roofs for instance (warehouses and the like). We saw them all over Greece, where their output might make the investment make sense and where marginal land taken OUT of farming for this might also make sense; but IoM?
ReplyDeleteYes, many of us here have the same concerns. Nobody seems to listen to the community though. Big business rules.
Delete84 acres would grow, or produce, enough food for probably the whole population. If your electricity bills would be reduced to 'zero', it might be worth it, but I doubt very much if that is the case.
ReplyDeleteExactly.
DeleteI looked into solar panels for my home but the cost wouldn't be recovered for 20-30 years and I won't be here by then (probably!)
ReplyDeleteI certainly won't!
DeleteOh dear, looks like another loose/loose project. Taking even halfway decent farmland out of action for a solar installation at the latitude of IofM sounds crazy, the value for food production far outweighs the questionable values of the solar power generated, as Cro indicates. And any realistic capacity battery backup to cover the average 15 hours a day with insufficient sunlight would totally bankrupt the IofM economy.
ReplyDeleteIt would be far more economical to invest in CCGT or other fossil fuel power that has 24/7 availability, especially as the CO2 emissions would be neglible in the overall picture. Not that CO2 emissions are actually a problem anyway - none of the models for global climate change have ever come close to predicting reality over temperatures, they have all grossly overestimated any effect of CO2 on climate.
Our Government has announced its Climate Change Plan with a commitment to cut emissions over the next five years. A perfect opportunity for all and sundry to muscle in with their money making schemes to help us out.
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