The video linked below shows, among other things, a comparison between
Blevin Solar Complex in Texas, a 270 MW solar complex covers 2300 acres.
The Bridge City gas plant, 1200 MW, covers 26 acres, or 88 times smaller than solar complex.
Gas plant nameplate rating 4+ times solar complex.
Gas plant annual production about 1200 MW x 8760 h/y x 0.8 CF = 8,409,600 MWh, 24x7x365
Solar Complex annual production about 270 MW x 8760 h/y x 0.22 CF = 520,344 MWh
Gas plant production is 16.2 times greater than solar complex
Solar Complex production at night is zero.
Solar Complex life about 20 – 25 years
Gas plant life about 40 - 45 years
The Solar Complex required mining ore-laden materials, extracting minerals and refining them, transporting the refined materials to a panel manufacturing plant. All these steps are very energy intensive, require lots of electricity, usually produced by coal in China. The panels are transported to Texas for building the Solar Complex. Ultimately the panels need to be stored in a hazardous waste land fill.
Solar production peaks around noontime, when demand is low. That means the OTHER plants must reduce their outputs as solar production increases in the morning, then increase their outputs as solar production decreases to zero during late afternoon and early evening peak hours, to maintain the production-demand balance on the grid, 24/7/365. Then the solar production is zero from early peak hours to early morning hours the next day. That means the OTHER plant have must provide the entire nighttime electricity supply to satisfy demand.
In colder climates, the solar capacity factors, CFs, are less, say about 0.15, which means a solar complex would produce a lot less electricity and would have a higher capital investment per MW. Also, during winter, solar panels would likely be covered with snow and ice for a week or more, which means near zero solar electricity production, which means the OTHER plants must provide all electricity, 24/7/365
HIGH COST OF SOLAR ELECTRICITY PER kWh
by Willem Post
14 hours ago
HIGH COST OF SOLAR ELECTRICITY PER kWh
https://www.windtaskforce.org/profiles/blogs/high-cost-of-solar-electricity-per-kwh
By Willem Post
.
The video linked below shows, among other things, a comparison between
Blevin Solar Complex in Texas, a 270 MW solar complex covers 2300 acres.
The Bridge City gas plant, 1200 MW, covers 26 acres, or 88 times smaller than solar complex.
Gas plant nameplate rating 4+ times solar complex.
Gas plant annual production about 1200 MW x 8760 h/y x 0.8 CF = 8,409,600 MWh, 24x7x365
Solar Complex annual production about 270 MW x 8760 h/y x 0.22 CF = 520,344 MWh
Gas plant production is 16.2 times greater than solar complex
Solar Complex production at night is zero.
Solar Complex life about 20 – 25 years
Gas plant life about 40 - 45 years
The Solar Complex required mining ore-laden materials, extracting minerals and refining them, transporting the refined materials to a panel manufacturing plant. All these steps are very energy intensive, require lots of electricity, usually produced by coal in China. The panels are transported to Texas for building the Solar Complex. Ultimately the panels need to be stored in a hazardous waste land fill.
Solar production peaks around noontime, when demand is low. That means the OTHER plants must reduce their outputs as solar production increases in the morning, then increase their outputs as solar production decreases to zero during late afternoon and early evening peak hours, to maintain the production-demand balance on the grid, 24/7/365. Then the solar production is zero from early peak hours to early morning hours the next day. That means the OTHER plant have must provide the entire nighttime electricity supply to satisfy demand.
In colder climates, the solar capacity factors, CFs, are less, say about 0.15, which means a solar complex would produce a lot less electricity and would have a higher capital investment per MW.
Also, during winter, solar panels would likely be covered with snow and ice for a week or more, which means near zero solar electricity production, which means the OTHER plants must provide all electricity, 24/7/365
https://robertbryce.substack.com/p/sunblock-the-global-fight-to-save
https://media4.manhattan-institute.org/sites/default/files/mines-minerals-green-energy-reality-checkMM.pdf