In many parts of the world, nations are noticing some of the growing pains associated with trying to do away with fossil fuels and rely increasingly on “green energy” such as solar and wind power. We’re seeing the same effects in the United States. One of the main obstacles is the inability of aging power grids to not only provide enough energy to keep the world moving but to accept the newer forms of energy being provided. The International Energy Agency in Europe is sounding the alarm, warning that rolling blackouts are once again becoming a very real risk if adjustments are not made. And in the northern hemisphere, having this happen just as winter is approaching is something of a worst-case scenario. (Associated Press)Stalled spending on electrical grids worldwide is slowing the rollout of renewable energy and could put efforts to limit climate change at risk if millions of miles of power lines are not added or refurbished in the next few years, the International Energy Agency said.
The Paris-based organization said in the report Tuesday that the capacity to connect to and transmit electricity is not keeping pace with the rapid growth of clean energy technologies such as solar and wind power, electric cars and heat pumps being deployed to move away from fossil fuels.
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol told The Associated Press in an interview that there is a long line of renewable projects waiting for the green light to connect to the grid.
Some of the “complications” under discussion were completely avoidable and could have been dodged with a bit more advance planning. One of the major problems with these newer green energy solutions is that they each have their own unique infrastructure. If you go put up a bunch of windmills on a hill, hooking them up to the grid isn’t as simple as running an extension cord down to the nearest powerlines and plugging them in as if you were setting up a new Playstation in your house. Adapters and converters are required, all of which takes time and costs money, driving up the cost of the project.
