Transmitting Renewable Energy to the Grid

Many countries are scaling up their investments in renewable energy. In 2010, electricity production from renewable sources - wind, solar, biomass, biofuels, geothermal, hydropower, and ocean energy accounted for 18 percent of global electricity supply. By early 2011, renewables made up a quarter of all installed power capacity. One of the main obstacles to the scale-up of renewable energy is connecting generating sites to the grid in an efficient manner. Renewable energy places greater demands on the transmission network than do conventional energy sources. First, the richest sites for solar and wind energy is often spread across multiple locations far from consumption centers or existing transmission networks. Second, generation is subject to variability in climate conditions (such as wind speed and solar radiation). This note focuses on the transmission implications of the dispersion of renewable energy sources, rather than on the implications of variability. In some sub regions of the United States and countries in Europe that are pursuing renewable energy options, the requirements for investment in transmission already approved by regulators (or forecasted by transmission companies) are double or quadruple recent investment trends. In Brazil the investment needs for renewable energy in some regions surpass the asset value of the distribution utilities closest to the renewable sites.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Madrigal, Marcelino, Jordan, Rhonda Lenai
Format:	Brief biblioteca
Language:	en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2014-02-24
Subjects:	approach, biomass, Black carbon, BOTTOM LINE, burning fossil fuels, Carbon, Carbon dioxide, climate, climate change, CO, CO2, CO2 emissions, coal, combustion, conventional energy, cost of electricity, distribution of energy, electrical power, electricity, electricity production, electricity supply, emissions, energy consumers, energy consumption, Energy Department, energy industries, energy mix, Energy Planning, energy sector, energy sources, energy systems, environmental issues, fossil, fossil fuels, Framework Convention on Climate Change, generation, greenhouse, greenhouse gas, greenhouse gas emissions, greenhouse gases, grid, heat, heat generation, hydropower, income, industrial emissions, methane, ocean energy, oil, petroleum, pipeline, power capacity, power sources, power supply, power systems, renewable development, renewable energy, renewable energy development, renewable energy generation, renewable energy projects, renewable energy sources, renewable resources, renewable sources, solar radiation, source of energy, Sustainable Energy, transmission lines, utilities, waste, wind, wind energy, wind power, wind power capacity, wind speed, world energy,
Online Access:	http://hdl.handle.net/10986/17139
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