| Year | Retail Sales | % | Electrical System Energy Losses | % | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 13 | 33.9% | 25.3 | 66.1% | 38.3 |
| 2019 | 12.8 | 34.5% | 24.3 | 65.5% | 37.1 |
| 2020 | 12.5 | 35.0% | 23.2 | 65.0% | 35.7 |
pv-magazine-usa.com
Texas remains a solar and storage hotspot, but transmission gaps could hamper growth
Data from ERCOT shows that more than 6,147 MW of solar and 1,506 MW of battery storage are in line to enter service in 2021. Transmission constraints could dampen future growth.
Article is confusing...
The pipeline for utility-scale solar development in Texas is being turned on as nearly 3 GW of projects with signed interconnection agreements are slated to be added by the end of the year. Battery energy storage additions are expected to reach 1,770 MW over the same time period, up from the 552 MW already installed.
pv-magazine-usa.com
Solar makes a lot of sense at ground level, too
Solar projects that support native grasses can sequester more carbon than cropland alone. And about all that corn for ethanol.
From an emissions-capturing standpoint, these native grassland habitats are important because they sequester almost 60% more carbon per acre than modern agricultural activities.The study modeled and averaged solar facilities in seven states in the Upper Midwest. Their modeling suggests that native grasses planted as part of 10 GW of solar generation capacity would sequester 129.3 tons of carbon per hectare; that is 65% and 35% greater than either an agriculture or a solar-turfgrass scenario, respectively.The researchers said that this volume of emission sequestration is equivalent to the emission savings of 5,000 GWh of fossil generation shifting to solar power, which would correspond to greater than 3 GW of solar capacity.Roughly 25% of the United States’ corn acreage is used specifically to generate biofuels, which represents only around 10% of all transportation fuel. Crops to create that amount of fuel is currently using somewhere between 14 and 20 million acres of land. If that same acreage were used for solar electricity generation, we would produce an eye-popping 1.8-2.5 TWdc. Some estimates are that the U.S. could reach 100% clean electricity with roughly 1.1 TW of wind and solar combined.That leads us to a startling conclusion. Solar fields are capable of producing roughly 16 times more transportation energy per acre than our current biofuel processes, while also providing a much needed opportunity to restore our native ecosystems.
The interesting thing about this article was the statement that if you converted just half of the acreage now devoted to corn ethanol to solar with native grasses underneath, you could meet ALL of our electricity needs for the future and the grasses would sequester a ****ton of CO2.
Electricity can replace most transportation fuel which is where all the ethanol goes.
Looks like 13 Midwest states make the most. California is#14. So, yes, California ethanol displaced electricity can move cars. Saves water, too
Why would you want to send electricity from KS to CA when CA has plenty of its own?
Huh?
The point is that you shouldn't be farming ethanol at all. It's environmentally destructive and a net carbon producer. TFA points out that solar plus native grasses can replace ethanol farming with net carbon sink plus cheap electricity. Last I heard, the Midwest has a growing demand for electricity so you shouldn't need to ship anything very far. Time to stop subsidizing environmentally destructive ethanol.
calmatters.org
