Equivalent of 97% of Scotland’s 2020 electricity consumption was from renewables

Re:Equivalent of 97% of Scotland’s 2020 electricity consumpt... by batpangolin on Friday March 26, 2021 @10:14AM (#26592388)

I don't see the problem with this number. Scotland (seen as a separate energy economy) sometimes exports energy to England and Wales, sometimes imports it. Scotland's production of renewable energy, considered in total MWh, represents 97% of its consumption of all electrical energy. Clearly, in dollar value, the number is smaller since they usually export at times of low prices and import at times of higher prices. That isn't the comparison that's being made.

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Re:Equivalent of 97% of Scotland’s 2020 electricity consumpt... by eldaisfish on Friday March 26, 2021 @10:44AM (#26592753)

Electrical energy is always in balance. Saying that 97% of Scotland's electrical energy needs were met by renewables is highly misleading because it ignores the most important piece of context - time.

Scotland could have generated 300% of daily energy demand from wind one some days. And zero on others. The reality is that one cannot be subtracted from the other to claim that net consumption is zero precisely because there is a time when that is not true.

Electrical energy is not like balance of trade i.e. it is not fungible. There is a further complication here - the assumption that there is a ready sink of generated energy. If that stops being the case, then suddenly those days of 300% demand being generated are no longer possible.

The headline is a mischaracterisation and is misleading.

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Re:Equivalent of 97% of Scotland’s 2020 electricity consumpt... by batpangolin on Friday March 26, 2021 @02:33PM (#26595331)

The claim that 'one can be subtracted from the other' is a straw man. The words 'Equivalent of 97%' are right there in the headline.

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