A serious enhance in solar energy technology in southern Europe performed a number one function in averting power shortages in the course of the heatwaves of latest weeks when temperatures broke information and drove unprecedented demand for air con.
Solar energy is especially suited to dealing with summer time warmth because the solar’s radiation is strongest across the hottest a part of the day, when electrical energy demand for cooling can be at its highest.
“The very significant growth in solar basically compensates for the peaks that are caused by air conditioning,” Kristian Ruby, secretary common of electrical energy trade group Eurelectric, mentioned of the scenario in Spain.
Spain and Greece are among the many nations which have put in many extra photo voltaic panels within the face of report excessive power costs final yr and the hunt for elevated power safety linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Spain added a report 4.5 gigawatts of photo voltaic photovoltaic capability final yr, leading to photo voltaic power output in July – sometimes one of many sunniest months – that was increased than any month to this point, Spanish electrical energy grid operator Red Electrica mentioned.
Data from Ember confirmed photo voltaic supplied nearly 24% of Spain’s electrical energy in July this yr, up from 16% in July 2022.
When hovering temperatures and demand for cooling led to a peak in Sicilian energy demand on July 24, practically half of the surplus demand – which totalled 1.3 GW – was coated by photo voltaic, Refinitiv information present. Sicily’s photo voltaic manufacturing final month was greater than double that of July 2022.
“Without the additional solar, the system stability impact would have turned out much worse,” Refinitiv energy analyst Nathalie Gerl mentioned.
Solar alone can not maintain up grids beneath extreme pressure. Catania, beneath Mount Etna in japanese Sicily, has confronted energy and water provide cuts that native officers blamed partially on the warmth. In Athens, energy grid operator IPTO mentioned wildfires had broken sections of the electrical energy grid.
But increased photo voltaic output helped to fulfill demand in each nations. During Greece’s peak energy demand this yr, additionally on July 24, photo voltaic photovoltaics coated 3.5GW of the full 10.35GW demand, grid operator IPTO mentioned.
Even in cooler and fewer sunny western nations comparable to Belgium, photo voltaic power has coated greater than 100% of the additional power wanted throughout noon spikes in energy demand.
DEMAND DESTRUCTION
Despite its quick progress, photo voltaic continues to be a comparatively small share of the facility combine in most nations, the place sources together with wind, fuel, coal and nuclear energy sometimes cowl the majority of demand over the yr.
Analysts say a second issue has helped to maintain Europe’s power methods working this summer time: total, energy demand has been comparatively low.
That has been the case since Europe’s power disaster final yr, when Russia lower fuel deliveries to Europe. Energy costs in Europe are nonetheless excessive in contrast with historic ranges – and customers and industries have responded by utilizing much less energy.
Extreme warmth this summer time has damaged by this pattern at occasions. But total, demand has been beneath regular – Italy’s common hourly energy use in July was 4.4% decrease than in July 2022, whereas Spain’s was down by 3.6%, Refinitiv information present.
“The only reason why this has been bearable is the low power demand environment that we’re currently in,” Refinitiv’s Gerl mentioned.
WORST IS YET TO COME
Scientists count on local weather change will make heatwaves of the sort southern Europe has suffered this summer time extra frequent and much more extreme within the coming years – including to the burden on Europe’s power infrastructure.
“Our energy systems are indeed not designed to cope with such situations,” mentioned Simone Tagliapietra, senior fellow at assume tank Bruegel.
Even earlier than this yr’s wildfires and report temperatures, warmth and drought final yr decreased hydropower technology, hampered gas transport by river, and compelled some nuclear energy crops to curtail their output when cooling of the crops was restricted by excessive river temperatures.
In a letter to the European Commission final week, trade teams together with SolarPower Europe urged policymakers to hurry up investments in power grids and promote initiatives that couple photo voltaic with power storage, to make sure solar energy expands rapidly sufficient to satisfy local weather change targets.
(Reporting by Kate Abnett and Susanna Twidale; enhancing by Barbara Lewis)
