Unfortunately, renewable energy has become an expensive source of energy

Scatec Solar recently Completion of the Kenhardt Solar Power Plant in South Africa. It is called a hybrid solar power plant because it is connected to a large battery. The cost of the project is about one billion dollars, and provides a capacity of 540 megawatts. This is expensive solar power – more than $1.8 million per megawatt, but you also have a battery system with 225 megawatts of output and 1,140 megawatt-hours of storage capacity. It provides the opportunity to smooth solar energy. Scatec was therefore able to obtain a 20-year agreement with the state electricity company to continuously deliver 150 MW to the electricity grid from 05.00 to 21.30 every day throughout the year.

150 MW is only 28 percent With a capacity of 540 megawatts. The guarantee only applies to 16.5 hours out of a 24-hour day, guaranteeing 903 GWh of electricity over the course of a year. This represents 19 percent of what would have been produced if the solar plant could produce 24/7. But the solar power plant can't! The positive thing is that electricity is guaranteed for a specific period of time throughout the year. Even in a very good solar region, one cannot guarantee more. But you want some extra power in the summer that can be sold on the spot market. The calculated price from the power plant is about 1 kroner per kWh before grid rent and electricity taxes.

The lack of predictability as to when electricity can be produced is the main weakness of wind energy

In Norway this would be the case It's hardly possible, or at least unimaginably expensive. We don't have 2,000 hours of sunshine a year, maybe half. Moreover, the difference between summer and winter here is much greater. Unlike South Africa, we need the most energy in the winter. It is then difficult to balance enough hours and days, regardless of the battery size.

In Norway, it is better to connect the battery to a wind turbine. On the coast, we can achieve approximately 4,000 full load hours of electricity per year. It is much better than the sun in most places in the world. But there's something else that complicates the picture for wind.

George Harrison stated In his time, “daylight is good at arriving at the right time.” This enables Scatec to deliver solar energy within the time promised. On the other hand, the wind decided that Cornelis Vrieswijk would be a very fickle friend. Although we know it's often windy, we don't know when it's windy. Installing a battery that would provide 50 MW of supply security at the Golslieteni Wind Farm every day throughout 2022 would require a battery about ten times the size of the battery at Kenhardt, which represents a third of the 150 MW of Kenhardt. However, you will then be able to deliver 24/7; A total of 438 GWh throughout the year. Additionally, a good year like 2022 would provide plenty of increments in the spot market, but with no guarantee as to when.