{"id":78918,"date":"2023-05-09T01:20:23","date_gmt":"2023-05-09T08:20:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/spanish-island-builds-giant-water-battery-to-boost-energy-security\/"},"modified":"2023-05-09T01:20:23","modified_gmt":"2023-05-09T08:20:23","slug":"spanish-island-builds-giant-water-battery-to-boost-energy-security","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/spanish-island-builds-giant-water-battery-to-boost-energy-security\/","title":{"rendered":"Spanish island builds \u2018giant water battery\u2019 to boost energy security"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Spanish<\/img> <\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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\"Si\u00f4n<\/img> <\/a> <\/p>\n
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Story by <\/h6>\n

Si\u00f4n Geschwindt <\/a> <\/h4>\n<\/section>\n<\/header>\n
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Gran Canaria is perhaps best known for its sandy beaches, eternal sunshine, and volcanic past. But isolated far from the European mainland, the island relies heavily on imported fossil fuels to power its growing economy \u2014 76% of its electricity comes from burning oil.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In an effort to decarbonise, the government has been investing heavily in renewable energies to harness the island\u2019s abundant wind and solar resources. In 2022, renewables made up 24% of the island\u2019s <\/span>energy mix<\/span><\/a>, up from just 12% in 2018. But as more renewables come online, the island faces another problem: storage.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Last year, the government invested <\/span>\u20ac400m in the Canary Islands\u2019 first-ever energy storage scheme, to stabilise the grid when the wind isn\u2019t blowing or the sun isn\u2019t shining. This project won\u2019t build battery packs, however, but convert two existing dams into one giant water battery.<\/span><\/p>\n

Salto de Chira, as the \u2018pumped hydro\u2019 project is known, <\/span>will pump water from the Soria dam into the Chira dam \u2014 which sits at a higher elevation \u2014 during periods of low energy demand. During periods of high energy demand, water will be released from Chira, down a tunnel, over a set of turbines, and back into Soria. And the cycle continues.<\/span><\/p>\n

How pumped hydro works. Credit: MBIE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Pumped hydro is often referred to as a \u2018giant water battery\u2019 because it can store and release power on demand. According to the <\/span>International Energy Agency<\/span><\/a>, it is still the most widely deployed storage technology today, accounting for over 90% of global energy storage capacity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When it comes online in 2027, the <\/span>Salto de Chira<\/span> project is expected to generate up to 200MW of power at times of high demand, equivalent to more than a third of the island\u2019s needs. Last week, Spain\u2019s grid operator Red El\u00e9ctrica selected GE Energy to supply the turbines for the plant, in another step forward for the scheme.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Red El\u00e9ctrica,\u00a0 the project will increase the island\u2019s share of renewables from 24% to 51% and save \u20ac122m a year in imported fossil fuel. It is also expected to create more than 4,300 jobs, <\/span>of which around 3,500 will be on Gran Canaria itself. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

President of the Canary Islands, \u00c1ngel V\u00edctor Torres,<\/span> called<\/span><\/a> the project a<\/span> \u201cgreat boost\u201d to the archipelago\u2019s ambitions of fully decarbonising its economy by 2040, ten years ahead of the targets set by the EU.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEnergy storage is going to be one of the key elements in the energy transition, both for its contribution to electrification and for its capacity to enable enhanced management of renewable energy, which is especially important in non-interconnected systems such as the islands,\u201d he said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The Soria dam is the only arch dam built on the Canary Archipelago, and standing at a lofty 132 metres is among the highest dams in Spain.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Canary Islands has ramped up its decarbonisation efforts significantly in the last five years. The archipelago\u2019s largest renewable energy complex, comprising eight wind farms and 12 solar plants, was <\/span>inaugurated<\/span><\/a> in 2022 and provides enough energy for around 54,000 households.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Spain\u2019s government and the European Union also recently announced plans to provide <\/span>\u20ac<\/span>20m in funding to support the development of 65 new <\/span>solar<\/span><\/a> projects across the Canary Islands by the end of next year. <\/span>The archipelago is also exploring alternatives such as <\/span>wave energy<\/span><\/a>, with the first such pilot project launched in February,led by Danish startup Wavepiston.<\/span><\/p>\n

Key to the success of all these projects, says one <\/span>study<\/span><\/a>, will be the deployment of sufficient energy storage solutions to stabilise the grid during peak demand, and the construction of sea cables to connect the islands. Pumped hydro seems to be taking care of the former, while the latter is gaining momentum with the first of many power links now under <\/span>construction<\/span><\/a> to connect Tenerife and La Gomera. The links are expected to decrease the cost of electricity for taxpayers and improve energy security in the archipelago.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

As European countries decarbonise their energy systems, adopting <\/span>energy storage solutions to balance the intermittent supply of renewable energy and increase energy security is becoming increasingly urgent. <\/span>According to the European Association for Storage of Energy (EASE), the EU will need 200GW of <\/span>energy storage<\/span><\/a> by the end of the decade and 600GW by 2050.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Switzerland is one of Europe\u2019s leaders in pumped hydro technology. This is a view from inside its latest plant, which opened at the end of 2022. The turbines are stored in an underground cavern the length of two football fields. Credit: Nant de Drance\/S\u00e9bastien Moret<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A new industry <\/span>coalition<\/span><\/a> launched last week aims to promote sustainable energy storage technologies like batteries, hydrogen, and pumped hydro in order to reach these targets.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cEnergy storage is key to building a future-proof, resilient, and decarbonised energy system,\u201d<\/span> said<\/span><\/a> EU energy chief Kadri Simson at the launch.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pumped hydro projects can be controversial, however, particularly when they involve dams on rivers that flood land to create new reservoirs and affect ecosystems. But as <\/span>highlighted<\/span><\/a> in an article published in <\/span>The Conversation <\/span><\/i>last year, most pumped hydro projects do not require the building of new dams, but the retrofitting of existing ones, as is the case with the Gran Canaria project. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Either way, <\/span>the IEA\u2019s landmark 2021 <\/span>Net Zero by 2050<\/span><\/i> report <\/span>estimates<\/span><\/a> that an additional 1300GW of hydropower is required if we are to meet the climate targets outlined in the Paris Agreement. This is double the current global capacity.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Get the TNW newsletter<\/p>\n

Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Also tagged with<\/h2>\n

<\/br> <\/section>\n<\/article><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Story by Si\u00f4n Geschwindt Gran Canaria is perhaps best known for its sandy beaches, eternal sunshine, and volcanic past. But isolated far from the European mainland, the island relies heavily on imported fossil fuels to power its growing economy \u2014 76% of its electricity comes from burning oil.\u00a0 In an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":78919,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","ocean_post_oembed":"","ocean_post_self_hosted_media":"","ocean_post_video_embed":"","ocean_link_format":"","ocean_link_format_target":"self","ocean_quote_format":"","ocean_quote_format_link":"post","ocean_gallery_link_images":"on","ocean_gallery_id":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[2644,397,2666,2696],"tags":[2643,395,2665,2695],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78918"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78918"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78918\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78919"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78918"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78918"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/techreviewers.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78918"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}