With the spread of solar power generation, the era may come when 'the more electricity you consume, the more you get paid'.
Renewable energies such as solar power are seen as promising means of curbing the impact of coal-fired power generation on global warming. Greg Baker, who runs the technology-related blog
IFOST Blog: Something funny is about to happen to some prices
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In recent years, the cost of solar power has been getting cheaper and cheaper than running fossil fuel power plants in the 2030s. Baker says that the efficiency of solar power generation is faster than other power generation methods, and that within the next 10 years, solar power alone will be able to meet the demand for electricity during the day.
One of the problems when trying to meet the power demand with solar power generation is that the amount of power generation decreases during the morning and evening when the sunlight that hits the panel is low. To solve this problem, photovoltaic power generation is becoming more efficient, and in the future, 'solar power will generate an excessive amount of electricity during the daytime when it is sufficient,' Baker said. He pointed out.
However, the problem here is how to consume the surplus electricity generated by solar power generation. Since the generated electricity cannot be left in an appropriate amount, the generated electricity must be used in some form. Electricity is an energy that is difficult to store, so electric power companies are looking for a place that consumes surplus electricity. In Japan as well, we are working to eliminate surplus electricity by reducing electricity charges during times when electricity consumption is low, such as midnight.
In addition, at thermal power plants where it is relatively easy to adjust the amount of power generation, it is possible to suppress the amount of power generation during non-peak hours, but at nuclear power plants where it is difficult to adjust the amount of power generation diligently, surplus power is already
Pumped-storage power generation is a method of generating electricity using the 'power of water flowing from a high place to a low place'. At night when there is excess power, water is pulled from a low place to a high place, and water is pumped during the daytime when electricity demand is high. Power is generated by flowing from a high place to a low place. In other words, pumped storage power plants have a role like a kind of storage battery, and they are often used in combination with nuclear power plants.
Mr. Baker points out that as a method of consuming surplus electricity associated with solar power generation, a method of 'paying a reward instead of consuming electricity' will appear instead of pumped storage power generation. This is a measure that has accelerated the 'midnight electricity rate discount' that electric power companies have already introduced, and there is a good chance that the ever-decreasing electricity rate will finally reach zero and that the electricity rate will become negative. And that.
For businesses that have to consume the electricity they generate, it is natural to pay electricity consumers a negative electricity rate if surplus electricity still occurs even if the electricity rate is zero. Also, even if the electricity bill becomes negative, there is no problem if you can make a profit by generating electricity at other times. In this case, the cost paid to the electricity consumer can be considered as a kind of 'maintenance cost of the transmission system'.
In addition, Baker pointed out that if 'a system that gets paid as much as it consumes electricity' is born, there is a possibility that a group that will carry out a large-scale business will appear at this time. Baker argues that 'desalination of seawater' is suitable for this business, considering the 'long standby time of equipment' and 'difficult to produce just-in-time'.
Desalination of seawater is known to have high energy costs, but in situations where it is beneficial enough to consume electricity, there are sufficient benefits to desalination of seawater. Also, in the case of 'a reward of 0.5 cents (about 0.5 yen) is paid per 1 kWh ', if fresh water made from 1 kWh of electricity can be sold at a price of less than 0.5 yen including necessary expenses, the produced fresh water will be profitable. It is possible to recover the cost even if you cannot get it. As a result, there may be a situation where the price of water becomes negative.
No matter how much solar power generation is a problem to eliminate surplus electricity, it may be hard to believe that situations such as 'electricity charges will be negative' and 'water prices will be negative' will actually occur. But Baker said, 'Many economists thought it would be impossible for negative interest rates to exist until it was actually introduced,' which is very strange in the field of economics. Said that could happen.
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