Julien Jomaux Profile picture
Jun 5, 2023 10 tweets 4 min read Read on X
Will large-scale #batteries store the energy when it is cheap and sell it back when expensive? My short answer is no.
A short thread. (1/10) Image
Volatility is on the rise with renewables, especially solar. Just check what happened last week in Europe. Very low and negative prices all other Europe for lunch. (2/10) Image
Solar was clearly one of the main factors. The residual load in Germany getting close to zero (negative in the Netherlands). (3/10) Image
So, we are at the age of the canyon curve... (4/10) Image
Should we install large-scale batteries to store excess energy and gives it back during the evening?
No, it is far from making economic sense today (happy to discuss assumptions). Basically, one spread per day is not enough to justify investing in large-scale batteries. (5/10) Image
I am not the only one to say that, I believe. @iain_staffell (6/10) Image
Or check the calculated revenues in this great study (sciencedirect.com/science/articl…). Far from justifying investing in large-scale batteries. (7/10) Image
Should we do any large-scale batteries? Yes, we should! But not for energy arbitrage...but for power reserves, very-short term portfolio management (balancing, intraday), renewables integration, grid congestion, ... Just not to store a lot of energy and give it back later. (8/10)
But probably the true potential is with Electric Vehicles. The stored energy would be much larger...of course, these batteries are not primarily made for that, so the potential is much lower. Still, great potential...if we have incitative tariffs. (9/10) @RWTH Image
If you like this thread, you can follow my work here: (10/10) Image

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Julien Jomaux

Julien Jomaux Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @JomauxJulien

Dec 20
One element is certainly changing our Grida: the rise of large-scale batteries. A short thread to introduce a longer post I am writing.

1/13

Here is the project of Engie Belgium. Image
First, what we are witnessing in Europe is a massive growth of utility-scale projects, and actually a reduction of home batteries.

Large scale has increased from 3.6 GWh to 11 GWh new capacity installed in 2024 (source: @SolarPowerEU )

2/13 Image
Home batteries are much more expensive than utility-scale storage.

Subsidies and people willing to pay for "uneconomical" projects were tye main drivers.

But at the end, it makes sense to build the large ones, costing only a fraction of distributed batteries.

3/13 Image
Read 13 tweets
Dec 11
Dunkelflaute for tomorrow.

936 €/MWh in Germany and Denmark at 5 PM.

Even during the energy crisis of 2022, day-ahead prices have never been so high.

The difference with France, Poland, and the Nordics is striking.

1/4 Image
And the daily average is close to 400 €/MWh.

This is 9 times the price of natural gas. Quite a stretch.

2/4 Image
Except during the night, prices are elevated.

3/4 Image
Read 4 tweets
Nov 25
The rise of solar and its impact on electricity markets.

Here is an overview of a presentation that I am making. A thread 🧵

First, solar is now very cheap...

1/14 Image
... that's why we plan to install a lot of it.

Installed peak power in the EU will be
•Above 300 GW in 2024.
•Above 500 GW in 2027.
•About 750 GW in 2030 (EU objective).

EU load is about 300 GW.

2/14 Image
And we start to install solar in not the most productive fashion in terms of energy produced per watt installed (bit not a bad idea though!).

3/14 Image
Read 14 tweets
Nov 7
Solar Capture Rate is defined as the weighted average of solar production by the (day-ahead) market prices. It gives the price that solar would get if sold on the market.

A tour of Europe of the last few years and some reflections. 🧵

1/10
As solar pushes market price down and as solar is concentrated on few hours (especially if you are from the Equateur), the effect can be quite fast.

We have several countries that have a solar capacity equal of higher than load in afternoon (Germany, the Netherlands).

2/10
Obviously, when it is clear blue sky, the market prices are zero or negative.

Let's start with Germany.

In red, we see that 2024 was really lower than other years.

A capture rate of 49% (May 2024) means that solar would have got only 50% of average market price.

3/10 Image
Read 10 tweets
Aug 26
Renewables should provide power reserves, not just energy.

Why? Because it could be profitable.

How? I explain here in a thread.

This is from my new post, you can have the long version by reading it (link in my bio).

1/11 Image
First, market revenues of renewables are declining, and fast for solar.

This year, in Spain, three months with a capture price for solar of 10 €/MWh on average.

France, below 30 €/MWh since April.

Germany, around 40 €/ MWh since April.

2/11 Image
With declining revenues from the energy market, renewables should tap into the markets for flexibility: the power reserves.

Renewables should not focus on max prod, but on max revenues/market value.

3/11
Read 11 tweets
Jul 19
There are more and more negative prices in the electricity markets.

Paying others to consume something is like considering it as "trash". Does not seem logical.

So, here is a thread with the reasons for negative prices. 🧵

1/11 Image
First, let's be clear, negative prices are increasingly present when solar is generating (at least in Germany, see below)

Here is a distribution of the number of negative price per hour. Already more negative prices in 2024 than previous years.

2/11 Image
Reason 1: impossible to reduce/switch off generation.

1a: hydro with reservoirs when reservoirs are full.
1b: run-or fiver hydro not made for not generating.
1c: etc.

And the big one: solar installed in "install-and-forget", which happens quite a lot.

3/11
Read 11 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(