> Does this show that current markets are working?
Depends on your definition of working. It wasn’t explicitly stated, but I think it’s implied that natural gas is bad, or at least, less desirable than renewable only.
I think something missing from the article’s analysis is that solar power can be, in a lossy manner, sent (north) eastwards in the US. If California is close to producing a surplus of solar power, then why not send it to seattle/Arizona. Northwards accounts for unbalanced solar load, and eastwards lets excess daytime Cali sunlight fuel the post-sun evening boom towards the east.
California has a unique opportunity to pioneer a lot of renewable energy tech. The (on average) rich population can afford higher costs, to buy at-home solar and battery packs. The geography and climate means plenty of renewable energy. The localization of energy production and storage could make the grid resilient, and distribute costs so there’s no government mega projects to politically grapple with. Unfortunately a lot of that won’t translate well to the rest of the Us, especially the Northern regions with much less generous weather. Unless California can find a way to export their energy, the rest of the US won’t benefit nearly as much.
Depends on your definition of working. It wasn’t explicitly stated, but I think it’s implied that natural gas is bad, or at least, less desirable than renewable only.
I think something missing from the article’s analysis is that solar power can be, in a lossy manner, sent (north) eastwards in the US. If California is close to producing a surplus of solar power, then why not send it to seattle/Arizona. Northwards accounts for unbalanced solar load, and eastwards lets excess daytime Cali sunlight fuel the post-sun evening boom towards the east.
California has a unique opportunity to pioneer a lot of renewable energy tech. The (on average) rich population can afford higher costs, to buy at-home solar and battery packs. The geography and climate means plenty of renewable energy. The localization of energy production and storage could make the grid resilient, and distribute costs so there’s no government mega projects to politically grapple with. Unfortunately a lot of that won’t translate well to the rest of the Us, especially the Northern regions with much less generous weather. Unless California can find a way to export their energy, the rest of the US won’t benefit nearly as much.