renewables

The fear of renewables

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The current energy model is again on the table after the blackout of April 28 in Spain. After a few weeks where the Spanish nation was covering 100% of your demand with renewable and exporting the remaining energyon the other side of the Pyrenees, France was observing with concern how their nuclear They have had to run into idle. And not because of a technical problem, but for an increasingly uncomfortable reality: the southern renewable boom is challenging northern nuclear hegemony. France resisting. While much of Europe has taken an address towards a system focused on clean energy, France redouble your commitment to nuclear energy With a production 70%. However, this scenario is not a technical preference, but a strategic ambition since the Gallic country seeks to be the battery of Europe. A centralized, controlled and export model. However, the renewable advance of countries such as Spain complicates that plan. In contrast. Spain, With a commitment determined by renewablesNot only has it reduced its dependence, but it begins to question the profitability of the French nuclear model. In April, he covered more than 60% of his demand with clean energy and exported a significant part to Francejust at the moment when several Gauling reactors were standing. As has explained for the avant -garde Eloy Sanz, professor at the University of King Juan Carlos I: “The debate is not just technical, it is deeply geopolitical.” And he added: “France wants to maintain its energy leadership position in Europe, but photovoltaic and wind are gaining ground and do so with increasingly low costs.” A silent competition. This conflict is not always perceived at first glance, but it is deep. In Brussels, the fight revolves around which technologies should receive public aid. Paris pressed for nuclear Be considered “green” and can opt for European funds, while countries like Spain are promoting a transition based on renewables, storage and intelligent demand management. The problems are at home. The France Academy of Sciences itself has criticized The new government energy plan (PPE3), describing it as “unrealistic” and “disconnected of reality. ”In addition, the controversy is not less: The French Nuclear Investment Planwhich includes up to 300,000 million euros To prolong and build new reactors, it has caused an internal political crisis, According to Le Point. France’s resistance is not born from fortress, but from the urgency of defending an increasingly discussed position. Maintain the position. France resists, yes. But it does not do it from the strength, but from the need to protect an increasingly questioned position. The renewable revolution in southern Europe is not just a promise of the future: it is already a reality that Tension pricesnetworks and policies. Energy leadership in Europe is in dispute, and this time, Spain arrives with a viable, exportable and increasingly difficult proposal to ignore. Image | François Goglins Xataka | The production of renewables in Europe is so strong that it is forcing nuclear power plants to work

The role of renewables

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A blackout never seen It affected on Monday throughout Spain and Portugal, causing uncertainty about the reliability of the electrical system. The incident occurred just after several historical days in which the demand for energy It had been covered in its entirety by renewable sources. This situation has opened a debate on whether the lack of electric synchrony could be one of the causes. We go in parts. First of all, synchrony in an electrical system means that all generators that produce electricity (hydroelectric, thermal, nuclear centrals …) revolve at the same frequency (50Hz), keeping the supply stable. These traditional technologies help maintain network stability thanks to their large rotary masses, which act as “shock absorbers” to sudden changes in demand or generation. On the contrary, renewable sources such as solar or wind generate electricity in another way: they do not revolve at the frequency of the network by mechanical masses. They connect to the system through Electronic deviceswhich means that they do not provide natural rotational inertia and, therefore, They do not stabilize the frequency in the same way. Opening of the debate. Bloomberg Javier Blas columnist He explained that the blackout can be related to a network dominated by renewable generation at that time. However, his statement was quickly nuanced by other specialists, such as engineer Sergio Fernández Munguía, who has shared An image of the structure of the generation before the blackout. In it, the data has shown that 30% of the generation came from non -renewable sources. For his part, the expert in renewables, Xavier Cugat, He has highlighted That at that time there were 6,604 MW of large -scale large -scale generation, between nuclear, thermoso and cogeneration, ensuring that the system still had an important support of synchronous generation. In any case, the hypothesis about the lack of synchrony remains only that: a hypothesis, such as has pointed out The engineer Jorge Morales de Labra in RTVE News: “It will have been determining exactly what has failed.” Although at this last moment, the Spanish electricity network has communicated at a press conference That after a preliminary analysis the blackout has been attributed to a massive power disconnection to the Spanish electrical system in the southwest of the country, presumably of renewable energy, and has ruled out cyber attack as a cause. Synchrony so important. This is a very technical debate, such as He explained The professor associated with the Technical University of Denmark, Marta Victoria, when the balance between generation and demand is broken, the frequency of the network begins to deviate. If generators cannot react on time – because there is less mechanical inertia – the system fails to stabilize, and a waterfall disconnection occurs. The expert used a simple metaphor: “It is like a ship that leans to the side and, instead of straightening, turns.” Finally, Marta Victoria has detailed that during the blackout several generators, both solar and nuclear, were automatically disconnected from frequency oscillations. This aggravated instability and ended up causing the mass blackout. Something that is missing. For his part, the professor and researcher at Rey Juan Carlos University, Eloy Sanz He recalled That the lack of rotational mass in the system can make it harder to correct rapid imbalances between generation and demand. In its analysis, it stressed that failure events in critical infrastructure or sudden disconnections can aggravate instability, especially when the system depends largely on sources that They do not provide synchrony. In short, both agree that understanding the lack of synchrony as a vulnerability factor is important to understand the fragility that the system showed, although it cannot be affirmed that it has been the only cause. Progressive accumulated generation and storage structure at 11:00 am Right now the network. At 11:00 in the morning of April 29, about to meet 24 hours from the blackout, the Spanish electricity grid presents a stable situation. The demand is around 25,500 MW and is being mostly covered by photovoltaic solar energy (32%), hydraulics (18.7%), wind (17.7%) and combined cycle (22.2%). The system is operating with a balanced combination of synchronous technologies and not synchronous, indicating a complete technical recovery after the blackout of the previous day. Image | Pexels Xataka | The blackout has caused important smoke in several Spanish refineries: it is a sign that security systems have worked

The production of renewables in Europe is so strong that it is forcing nuclear power plants to work

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In Europe there is a division around the closure of nuclear. Some countries have already disconnected them at all, such as Germanyor are in the process of doing so, like Spain. Meanwhile, France keeps them as a pillar of its electrical system. However, the arrival of spring has evidenced something that was suspected: the rise of renewables have forced nuclear plants to stop. A lot of light and little demand. The production of renewable energy has saturated the electrical networks in several European countries. According to Bloombergthe immediate consequence has been the fall in electricity prices, which on holidays (Easter and Easter) and with low demand have even become negative. In Spain, five of the seven nuclear reactors They stopped or reduced their burden And, in the case of France, its electric company, known by its acronym EDF, has cut its atomic production in an average of 4GW daily in March, double a year earlier. Negative prices When talking about negative price it may seem that electricity will be free, but it is not. This means that the electric market, based on time auctions, can yield negative prices when there is too much supply and very little demand. In those hours, producers or electrical companies have to pay to place their energy on the network. Renewables, which have legal priority of access, continue to function. On the other hand, nuclear cannot lower their power so quickly and operate in these conditions, especially in countries such as Spain where the tax burden has increased by 71% since 2019, According to PWC. The clean boom. The rise of renewables is promoting many countries to operate with energy 100% cleanrecently Spain He joined this new coverage. Yes, it is true that the increase in installed total capacity has grown vertiginously in a few years, reaching almost 700 GW According to the Global Energy Review 2025. In this commitment to clean generation systems, storage systems also enters batteries either Reservoirsin addition to creating A good electric structuredespite the fear of companies around The uncertainty of the closure of nuclear. What about nuclear energy? If the nuclear operate less hours and with low prices, they lose profitability. And if they also have to stop and restart due to demand variations, costs rise and technical risks increase. As has detailed The New York medium, France, with 70% of its electricity still of nuclear origin, is seeing how that technical rigidity collides with a system in transformation. EDF has warned that frequent variations hinder maintenance and routine tests. Spain already has put closing date To all its reactors between 2027 and 2035, and other countries follow that path. Forecasts According to Staffan Bergh, chief analyst of Bodecker Partners: “We will see many more hours with negative prices, and these will only increase during spring.” In this line the analyst explained that it is not necessary to install more renewable, but in knowing how to use them well, manage them better and complement them with intelligence. Image |Nuclear forum Xataka | A Tesla co -founder has done business with tariffs: it extracts rare land from old batteries without going through China

For the first time, 100% of Spain’s energy has been covered with renewables. The question is whether we can repeat it

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If a couple of years ago It was a utopia Talking to produce 100% renewable energy in Spain, last year, showed, together with Portugal, how to lead the energy transition with 82% clean electricity. But in a display of energy ambition, last Holy Thursday, April 17, Spain managed to produce 100% renewable energy. Short. At the end of 2024, Spain closed with an installed power of 132,343 MW in its electrical system, being 64.3% of the total renewables. Last Thursday, wind and solar energy covered with more than 100% of demand in Spain, According to the Spanish Electricity (Ree). Specifically, at 2:45 pm he reached the maximum peak at 114.42%. In data. According to the statistics of the Spanish Electricity (Ree)the maximum energy of that day was 114.52% renewable and wind along with the plot reached 100.29%; while, nuclear did not exceed 12%. For its part, like He explained The Xavier Cugat energy analyst, the minimum clean energy data were 55.89%, and the plot together with the wind reached 25.88%; On the other hand, nuclear energy did not reach 7%. Temporary nuclear closure. On Holy Thursday it was a fairly moved day, not only because of the steps of Holy Week, but because in terms of energy matter, the co -chip nuclear power was temporarily closed, leaving only two active nuclear, according to the middle the country. In total, five nuclear were stopped, which raised renewable prominence to more than 77% of the generation. And even with that scenario, According to Energy Analyst Pedro Frescothe situation was export and storage to the maximum, and even renewable energy was waste that was not generated. This context reopens the debate on the nuclear closure calendar. Faced with those who argue that turning off centrals implies more emissions, energy expert Xavier Cugat has sustained otherwise: “Eliminating nuclear does not imply more emissions; it is the only way to continue expanding renewables, which are the only ones that are reducing emissions here and worldwide.” In 2023, According to Irena data The world added 585 GW of renewables, compared to just 3.9 GW of nuclear. So is energy left over? With so many green gigawatts, the big question is what to do with energy when it is left over. Storage has become the great technical challenge and Spain has found a solution in its reservoirs. This system has doubled Its activity in the last 15 years and is key in network management, the last battery megaproject It is located in Gran Canaria. What if there is no sun or wind? In Germany they call it Dunkelflautea word that describes that perfect storm in which there are cloudy days without wind, so the renewable generation plummeted. However, in Spain, this scenario is less frequent. In addition to having a greater solar irradiation and strong wind gusts according to which areas of the country, the system has the support of hydroelectric energy acting as a great stabilizer. Although we still partially depend on gas at times of low generation, the truth is that there is no “Mr. Burns” willing to cover the sun. The problem is not the lack of light, but how to take advantage of it when it is left over. Symptom of something more or a day flower? More and more cases of countries are using 100% of their electrical demand with renewable, there are potential cases such as Denmark that wind production exceeds the total demand of the country or Portugal which managed to supply exclusively with clean energy for six days in a row. In the case of Spain, reaching this milestone does not seem a coincidence since it occurs in a context of strong renewable growth, reinforced infrastructure and improvements in network management. Everything indicates that it is not an anecdote, but a clear indication of a structural change that advances firmly. A historic day. And now what? 100% renewable energy production in Spain marks a milestone and the final destination projected for nuclear. Although it has been a stable source, its high cost, the waste it generates and the thrust of new renewable technologies question their continuity in the energy mix. The key to the future will be to build a more flexible electrical system, capable of adapting to renewable variability and backed by modern storage and network infrastructures. Image | Pexels Xataka | Almost a year working only with renewables. Thus Uruguay has managed to arm the rest of the world

There is a place where renewables are gaining the game left over fossil fuels: patents

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Thanks to a new project of GLOBAL RENEWABLE Watch It can be observed The rise of renewable energiesspecifically, solar and wind. However, this considerable increase in clean sources has managed to displace fossil fuels, and much of this advance is due to technological patents. The initiative. An analysis of the International Energy Agency (IEA) has detailed How renewable energy patents have increased 4.5 times faster in the last two decades, surpassing fossil fuel -based patents in number. Global policies. This increase is observed in the growth of renewable capacity and the policies focused on the commitment to achieve the Carbon neutrality. According to the study, support with public policies and public and private financing have managed to reach 60,000 million dollars in large -scale technologies, but some of these projects face challenges such as inflation and political uncertainty. A global movement. Now if you want to have a more open overview about which country has invested, the king is undoubtedly China. The country that has been leading the energy transition It has allocated half of its energy patents and more than 90% of its financing of risky capital to mass technologies, such as batteries and electrolyters. For its part, Europe follows a similar path, focusing on scale engineering projects and renewables have overcome coal. However, the United States has so far maintained a diversified portfolio that covers fossil energy technologies such as clean, but this can change the future By the current Trump administration. Other emerging sources. An area that promises according to the study is hydrogen. Patents related to the production and use of this new source increased 47% in 2022, with an approach to industrial applications such as transport and manufacturing steel. Particularly, in Spain hydrogen is taking the front as A future gas source and be able to export it through Europe. Future investment. From the study They have remarked The need to increase public investment in energy R&D, because currently the financing of the member countries of the IAE does not reach 0.04% of GDP. Researchers have pointed out that the future path is an international collaboration in development plus solutions. In addition, they have focused on other emerging technologies such as carbon capture and storage (CCS), intelligent electrical networks and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in energy management. But there is a bottleneck. On the one hand, long -term shortage of the strategic material supply chain and the lack of infrastructure in some countries. On the other hand, the withdrawal of some large -scale projects focused on clean sources, as the case of BP. Finally, in recent days a tariff war has begun by Trump, so It will be to see how markets open. Image | Pxhere and Pexels Xataka | Now we can see the rise of renewable energy in the world: we just needed the satellite images

Finland has a problem with renewables. You will solve it by building a storage megabattery

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Finland has experienced A rapid growth of wind energy, becoming the second source of electricity in the country. However, the Nordic country is presented with a challenge with the characteristic intermission in this type of sources. Finland has found a great solution to this problem. The largest in the country. A new battery storage project It has been approved Em Nivala, Finland. The companies in charge will be Locus Energy of Seb Nordic Energy and Ingrid Capacity AB, and the construction begins immediately. An expansion of renewables. Finland has not taken into account the intermission of wind after of his great betwhich It has caused fluctuations In electricity prices. During periods of excess production, prices can reach negative levels, which forces us to pay more. To give an example, last year, 725 hours were recorded with negative prices, compared to only five hours in 2021, exceeding 455 hours from Germany and other European countries, according to data from Aurora Energy Research that Bloomberg has had access. For this reason, this has generated an urgent need to store the surplus of electricity, and the batteries are presented as a solution. How will it be. The project will be 70 megawatts, which means that you can supply approximately 70,000 to 140,000 homes for an hour. The system will store that energy and release it when necessary, working for two hours at full capacity. The construction will begin immediately, and it is expected to be operational in the second half of 2026. But this is not the only one. Finland has been investigating storage for a while, because the government has established The goal of being totally neutral in carbon by 2035. In fact, it was in Finland when he began to experience With sand batterieswhich offer a long -term storage solution. Growth. Finland has joined a trend that many countries already adopt and that have found in storage the response to combat the intermission of renewable energies. In fact, it is expected that by 2035 the new battery facilities will multiply by 10. In a Ránking of nations, for the moment China is in the leadfollowed by the United States, then the rest stays in Europe with Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. In The Spanish case Before the lack of sufficient batteries to store energy efficiently, Spain has resorted to its reservoirs. From a hydraulic pumping system it has managed to store energy. In fact, in the last 15 years, Spain has doubled the amount of energy stored through this method, which has allowed to better manage the intermission of renewable energies and optimize the use of clean energy sources. Bet on wind, and nuclear? Despite the growth of wind energy in Finland, the country Keep betting by nuclear energy because it is a constant source of electricity. In addition, Finland has advanced in the safe storage of nuclear waste, with The onkalo deposit to manage long -term waste. However, the country’s goal is to diversify its energy sources and has found in energy storage a solution to balance the variability of renewables and ensure stable supply. Image | Kallerna Xataka | Research on submarine cables cut in the Baltic has taken a turn: it was not Russia, it was inexperience

More and more public transport networks are going to renewables. And the Málaga subway is the last example

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The renewable generation is marking a milestone In Spain. This advance has promoted many cities to integrate clean sources in their public infrastructure, such as Malaga. The city meter wants to be propelled by solar energy. Short. The Málaga Metro It has ended The third and last phase installation of its photovoltaic solar plant, located around the workshops and garages. This solar panel system reaches 27% of annual energy consumption. In addition, the investment has promoted 1.9 million euros. Previously. Before the installation of solar panels, the Malaga subway depended on the conventional electricity grid, which in Spain a significant percentage comes from fossil fuels. Although the new solar project will reduce this unit will not be total. So the utility? With solar self -consumption, the Málaga subway will cover 27% of its energy consumption without depending on the conventional electricity grid. This implies remarkable savings in the energy invoice, since it will not have to buy electricity from non -renewable sources. In addition, it will not be exposed to changes in the energy market and in the central hours of the day the production will cover the entire demand of the system. However, it will continue to use the network for the remaining energy consumption. The installation. According to The press release From the Junta de Andalucía, the solar plant occupies almost 15,000 square meters and has 1,900 solar panels in the Asperones area. The installation has presented technical challenges for the place where it has been installed and the infrastructure designed specifically to withstand solar panels. The project is born from the energy efficiency plan in which the Málaga Metro has been working for more than ten years. The total capacity of plant production is 3,116 MWh per yearreducing energy costs and improving system self -sufficiency. Other cities. The rise of self -consumption in Spain is not only for the house, other cities have replicated this project that begins in Malaga. We can find cases in the city of Madrid and Barcelona. For its part, at European level, we also find The London Metro which is supplied with solar and wind energy, while The Berlin Metro It has advanced in the integration of renewables in its energy consumption. Image | Photoland and Junta de Andalucía Xataka | A hydrogen train has crossed Spain and Portugal for the first time: 10,000 km travel, including the Pyrenees

There was a time in which the big oil companies raised “transition” to renewables. BP just kill the plan

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The British giant BP has announced a radical turn in its corporate strategy: from the green commitment to fossil fuels again. Short. A year after be appointed CEO of BPMurray Auchincloss has dismantled the plan to reduce the production of hydrocarbons that had promoted his predecessor, Bernard Looney. Auchincloss described his new strategy as a “fundamental restart” In the company’s plans: to cut the investment in renewable energy to increase the production of oil and natural gas. A turn in the middle of the investment pressure. The latest BP results did not excite their investors. During the fourth quarterthe net profit of the group fell to 1.2 billion dollars, less than half as in the same period of the previous year. With a collection of dividends of just eight cents per share, Elliott Investment Management, which accumulates a participation Of almost 5,000 million dollars in BP, it has intensified the pressure on the group to improve the return of its shareholders. Given this scenario, BP has decided not to get away from fossil fuels, but to enhance its production. When your neighbor’s beards see cut … Shell, Exxonmobil and Totalenergies, three of the main competitors of BP, They have been improving results Thanks to its commitment to the production of hydrocarbons, whose demand continues to increase slightly despite the energy transition. As the divergence in the performance of both strategies became more noticeable, BP shareholders, especially Elliott, have been demanding drastic improvements in the structure and strategy of the company. How this affects renewables. It is not encouraging news. BP plans to increase its investment in hydrocarbons to about 10,000 million dollars annually until 2027, with the aim of produce between 2.3 and 2.5 million barrels Petroleum and natural gas newspapers by 2030. To be able to do this while returning capital to shareholders, BP will substantially reduce spending on less profitable projects, such as renewable energies. The group will adjust its investments in these areas with a very selective approach, prioritizing transition projects that require a lower disbursement. Its Offshore wind division will become independent from the group. Even so… BP says to continue committed to its goal of achieve carbon neutrality by 2050a legal objective established by the United Kingdom government, which was one of the first to formalize and support with legislation the commitment to reduce net greenhouse gases to zero emissions. BP’s change of strategy can help her be more profitable in the near future, but only a transition. It will clearly be inevitable If climatic policies are maintained or become more aggressive. With the improvements in efficiency and safety of nuclear energy, advances in electrification and increasingly cheaper renewables, excuses are over to continue betting on fossil fuels. Image | BP In Xataka | European oil companies readjust their strategy: they leave aside the green transition before market pressures

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