In our vital attempts to reach net zero in electricity production there is an ongoing conceptual battle between power and energy. Talking solely in energy terms conceals many important issues with intermittent renewables. Politicians, through ignorance, use the terms interchangeably although they have clear and distinct meanings even in everyday language: the power of a weightlifter, the energy of a long-distance runner, the power of an elderly dictator, the energy of young children. The technical meaning is no different and I would expect engineers to highlight that they are very different quantities.
E&T’s report that the Hornsea 2 windfarm off the Yorkshire coast is now fully operational (November 2022) says that a single rotation of each turbine blade produces enough energy to power an average UK home for 24 hours. Without carefully quantified and managed storage capacity a single rotation will only power a...