Could Seasonal Pumped Hydropower Be A Solution to Storage Challenges?
When it comes to meeting climate mitigation and sustainable development goals, energy storage plays an important part. But, as we don’t have any reliable and efficient energy storage devices, it becomes difficult to meet the majority of future electricity supply, including the electrification of multiple energy end-use sectors.
To solve this issue, and a one-step further towards a sustainable economy, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) published research regarding a technology named, “Seasonal Pumped Hydropower Storage (SPHS)”.
The scientists at IIASA found that Seasonal pumped hydropower storage (SPHS) could both an affordable and sustainable solution to store water and energy at a large scale.
The lead author of the research, IIASA postdoc Julian Hunt said and Norvergence quotes: The energy sectors of most countries are undergoing a transition to renewable energy sources, particularly wind and solar generation.
These sources are intermittent and have seasonal variations, so they need storage alternatives to guarantee that the demand can be met at any time.
Short-term energy storage solutions with batteries are underway to resolve intermittency issues, however, the alternative for long-term energy storage that is usually considered to resolve seasonal variations in electricity generation is hydrogen, which is not yet economically competitive.
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Parameters and Important Findings w.r.t Seasonal Pumped Hydropower Storage (SPHS)
- The water storage costs with SPHS plants vary from 0.007 to 0.2 US$/m3.
- The long-term energy storage costs vary from 1.8 to 50 US$/MWh.
- The short-term energy storage costs vary from 370 to 600 US$/KW.
Where the Seasonal Pumped Hydropower Storage (SPHS) can be used?
Overall, the SPHS can be used in any part of the world, but if we consider any particular locations, it has significant potential exists in:
- In the Northern part of the Middle East
- In the lower part of Himalayas
- Rocky Mountains
- Andes
- The Northern part of the Middle-East
- Alps
- Brazilian Highlands
- Papua New Guinea
- Stanovoy mountain ranges in Russia
- Ethiopian Highlands
- Central America
- The Sayan
- Yablonoi
Regarding the potential of SPHS, Hunt said, this study demonstrates that there is an extremely high potential for SPHS to be used across much of the world, providing a readily-available, affordable and sustainable solution to support the transition to sustainable energy systems and overcome real and perceived barriers to high shares of renewable generation.
In concluded words he added, with the need for a transition to a more sustainable world with lower CO2 emissions, renewable energies and energy storage will play a major role in the near future. Given the vast untapped and cheap potential of SPHS, it will soon play an important role in storing energy and water on a yearly basis.
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Seasonal Pumped Hydropower Storage (SPHS)
There is no doubt that energy storage is playing and will play a crucial role in adding wide-ranging flexibility services across multiple timescales in variable natural energy penetration. We need both government and private sector investment in this sector. We all have to play a vital role in achieving a sustainable future.
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By George Stacey
(Environmentalist at Norvergence)
https://www.norvergence.net
https://www.facebook.com/norve
https://twitter.com/norvergenc
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