1y ago

The Netherlands generates way more solar power than Canada. Here's how they do it - Global investment in solar power now tops all other energy generation technologies combined, says IEA

www.cbc.ca /news/climate/solar-power-cheap-netherlands-1.7250118

While Canada lags behind in solar adoption, many places including Germany, China, Japan and even the United States are moving quickly.
In fact, on certain days, some places are generating so much energy, the price to purchase it is dropping below zero, prompting concerns about storage capacity for the abundant power source.

32 comments

I don't think it's fair to look at Canada as a monolith. Quebec is generating most of its energy from hydro, whereas Ontario relies on a well established nuclear energy infrastructure. Provinces that need to change are Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta.
Edit: Manitoba actually relies on hydro for 97% of their usage. So correction: only Alberta and Saskatchewan!
- https://www.cer-rec.gc.ca/en/data-analysis/energy-markets/provincial-territorial-energy-profiles/provincial-territorial-energy-profiles-manitoba.html
  Mantioba's mostly fine, SK and AB are awful though
- In Alberta you can't refuse to let someone exploit oil resources found on your property but you can't willingly let someone develop solar energy on your property.
  Solar farms are financed by giant companies (with the biggest one being financed by Amazon) as a way to greenwash their emission numbers even though the electricity being produced isn't used to power their own infrastructure.
  
  I don't think "our operations run on green energy" matters that much. Energy is energy, if you give other people green energy, you are still reducing emissions. You are just reducing other people's instead of your own, but global warming is a global issue.
  
  In Alberta you can’t refuse to let someone exploit oil resources found on your property
  TBF, I'm pretty sure that's how it works throughout the country. The title on my home in Ontario has easements for potential minerals/resources as well.
- Manitoba doesn't belong on that list. Manitoba's electricity comes from 100% renewable sources (~97% hydro, ~3% wind, and 0% fossil fuels).
  
  Yeah I forgot Manitoba was mostly relying on hydro!
They also have a lower cost of living, legalized sex work, lower crime rates including lower car theft rates and lower violent crime rates, and way better public transportation.
- but.. our government
  didn't/doesn't address housing shortage.
  didn't/doesn't address inflation.
  increases taxation as a means to get more income flow to the government
  spends crazy(milions and bilions) on S.D.G ideals
  makes it impossible for farmers to meet (Co2 etc)regulations
  and government buys them out..
  and Schiphol etc buying that land for extra CO2 credit.
  has crazy 'sustainability' demains, which makes international production business move elsewhere
  increasing poverty. People requiring food-bank support is increasing, but because of increasingly harsh business environment the food-bank actually obtains less from industrie.
  many small/medium businesses are going bust because they can't repay the corona-loan. (which many have warned is a slow death trap)
  
  What a load of nonsense.
So what? It isn't as though solar is the only clean energy option out there (and the externalities from the production and disposal of solar panels make it not as environmentally friendly as it looks at first glance, although obviously still better than fossil fuels). Wind, hydro, nuclear, and even tidal may be more appropriate for our much larger, much colder, much less dense, more northerly country. We already have a lot of hydro and (in Ontario) a lot of nuclear, and both seem to serve our needs well.
What we really need to do is shift Alberta's economy away from fossil fuels. That would do a lot more good than a Netherlands-sized installation of solar panels.
However, ~~unless~~ unlike Germany, Canada has a stellar nuclear energy industry.
Our CANDU reactors are amongst the best and the safest in the world.
- Germany has been dismantling nuclear power plants.
  
  And building liquified natural gas terminals to receive shipments in the US after getting caught with their pants down by Putin. I’m pretty sure Putin’s propaganda machine had a lot to do with Germany’s pullback from nuclear.
  
  I meant to say "unlike Germany". I'll fix it
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The Netherlands is known for scattered showers, abundant waterways, and actively-used agricultural land, so it took ingenuity for the small country to soar to the top of the continent's solar pyramid.
One in three homes has rooftop solar, commercial ventures are grabbing up space on waterways, and even old landfill sites are finding a second life as energy generators.
While Canada lags behind in solar adoption, many places including Germany, China, Japan and even the United States are moving quickly.
In fact, on certain days, some places are generating so much energy, the price to purchase it is dropping below zero, prompting concerns about storage capacity for the abundant power source.
"Even if the transition is propelled by economics alone, with no further policy drivers to help, renewables could still cross a 50 per cent share of electricity generation at the end of this decade," BloombergNEF's 2024 New Energy Outlook states.
Project Manager Bart Meij says using otherwise empty rooftops offers an untapped revenue stream for building owners is an easy sell.
The original article contains 930 words, the summary contains 172 words. Saved 82%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!
I haven't read the article but.... :)
Generally the big problem we still have to solve with reviewables is storage.
I think that one advantage that the NL has with renewables is that they don't have the storage problem, because they can always reroute to more pumping water out the polders.
- Actually,
  energy grid in NL is becoming unstable because of solar energy :/ (e.g. by houses supplying it onto the network)
  and our cable network is not capable of handling the EV cars recharge requirements.
  and houses to be built not able to get an electric connection, because of electrical infrastructure capacity-problems.
  So, don't bet on solar too soon
  
  Sounds like kinks to be ironed out rather than insurmountable problems tbh.
  
  Actually, lack of capacity is pro-petro propaganda. In Ontario demand and generation can literally double in a week and still be within the normal range. Using smart charging (not Smart^TM) it would be easy to recharge commuter vehicles overnight in such a way that the baseload is increased making the grid MORE stable, not less.
  
  Solar in some cases can actually address the [over exaggerated] concerns regarding EV charging. By bringing power generation closer to where the power is being used, there can be less load on the long distance transmission lines. In some cases it can also reduce the load on local transformers.
  But all of that is mostly irrelevant, the transition to EVs will happen over the next 30 years. Even if we weren't looking to move to EVs if we ignored the current grid we would be in trouble. But like anything we'll upgrade parts slowly as needed.

32 comments