GasBuddy Blog

GasBuddy News Article

votes

EXCESS POWER IN THE NORTHWEST?

The Oregonian -- But all bets are off for the next few months. It's springtime in the Northwest, meaning rain, warmer temperatures, snow melt and blustery wind. Occasionally, it also means more hydro and wind electricity is pulsing into the grid than anyone can use.

Read the Full Article

Submitted Apr 07, 2012 By: RBob

Back To News

Category: Daily News Article Discussions > Topics	Add to favorite topics

Author	Topic: EXCESS POWER IN THE NORTHWEST?	Post a Reply Back to Topics

REPLIES (newest first)Ignore Short Messages

carrek Sophomore Author Seattle Posts:230 Points:190,350 Joined:Aug 2005	Message Posted: Apr 9, 2012 11:11:34 AM Ignore carrek Report Abuse Just to clarify: Hydro power is not free, but it is considerably cheaper to produce power from water as you are not having to buy something to burn to produce electricity.
carrek Sophomore Author Seattle Posts:230 Points:190,350 Joined:Aug 2005	Message Posted: Apr 9, 2012 11:06:00 AM Ignore carrek Report Abuse It's better to have an oversupply than a shortage of electricity like California faced one summer. I understand BPA putting a priority on using its own electricity generation over wind generation, but the wind generation companies need to make a profit.
gazprize Veteran Author Toronto Posts:483 Points:125,120 Joined:Jan 2012	Message Posted: Apr 9, 2012 10:24:25 AM Ignore gazprize Report Abuse good to know
sjf238 Champion Author Philadelphia Posts:1,215 Points:647,955 Joined:Mar 2011	Message Posted: Apr 9, 2012 10:15:06 AM Ignore sjf238 Report Abuse Interesting.
SilverDodge2000 Champion Author Spokane Posts:1,038 Points:186,405 Joined:Feb 2011	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 9:58:06 PM Ignore SilverDodge2000 Report Abuse Hey let's all start a dumb a$$ rumor that the power from the Bonneville Power Administration is free or cheap. My power bill doesn't reflect that. On the other hand the hundreds of wind power turbines have went up in the last 10 years. Since GE bought them the government has been paying them to set idle. As far as excess power, no they produce power in the summer months to california at the cost of our water levels and impact the environment and crops along the river system.
NHLiveFree Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:11,105 Points:1,624,380 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 9:45:35 PM Ignore NHLiveFree Report Abuse RBob. The Grand Coulee Dam has been online since 1941 courtesy of FDR and the WPA. It, like the TVA, and the Hoover dam, supply relatively free electricity to the fortunate residents and industry in the surrounding area. What an incredible ROI too!
NHLiveFree Champion Author New Hampshire Posts:11,105 Points:1,624,380 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 9:39:52 PM Ignore NHLiveFree Report Abuse What a nice problem to have with behemouth dams like the Grand Coulee Dam capable of over 6 Megawatts output power! Without the huge power drain from nearby Hanford to make nuclear weapons, excess power for the entire Northwest is a nice luxury most areas do not have. Perhaps serious hydropower should be developed in more states with this capability.
Gnusman53 Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,021 Points:1,114,370 Joined:Feb 2004	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 11:57:39 AM Ignore Gnusman53 Report Abuse Until the US develops a national 21st century power grid, with the ability to include alternative energy source.... we are a country on the decline..... we have some portions of the infrastructure in this country that date to the early 1900s..... And we still have a congress that does not want to fix/improve that.
Gnusman53 Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,021 Points:1,114,370 Joined:Feb 2004	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 11:36:05 AM Ignore Gnusman53 Report Abuse This patchwork system is something that needs to be upgraded to the 20th century... if not the 21st century......and until that happens, the taxpayers and americans will continue to be abused for profit.......
RBob Champion Author Portland Posts:3,380 Points:2,349,695 Joined:May 2004	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 11:20:47 AM Ignore RBob Report Abuse Bonneville power is far from free. The Bonneville Power Administration is a public corporation the same as the TVA. Also, built into any hydro power project and retro into any old project is salmon migration protection. The fish ladder windows are very interesting at the Bonneville Dam and other dams on the Columbia. A larger issue for the salmon is spanning habitat and hydro dams are only a small part of that issue.
Gnusman53 Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,021 Points:1,114,370 Joined:Feb 2004	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 11:15:17 AM Ignore Gnusman53 Report Abuse Since the GOPsteppers are whining about this, then why haven't they pushed for a 21st century power grid that can easily accept alternative energy sourced power...... but they have fought anything like that for decades... [Edited by: Gnusman53 at 4/8/2012 2:16:03 PM EST]
Gnusman53 Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,021 Points:1,114,370 Joined:Feb 2004	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 11:12:32 AM Ignore Gnusman53 Report Abuse Even in Seattle people have used solar arrays to recharge their EVs for years....so they aren't paying anything to charge their vehicles up....
Gnusman53 Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,021 Points:1,114,370 Joined:Feb 2004	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 11:03:47 AM Ignore Gnusman53 Report Abuse Sadly... it points out two things..... how incomplete our power grids are.....and how incoherent some posters are...
PDQBlues Champion Author San Diego Posts:7,084 Points:1,450,275 Joined:Jan 2009	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 10:58:56 AM Ignore PDQBlues Report Abuse Yes, it's true. Washington state produces so much electricity (and much of that production from water) that it sells a great deal of what they produce to California. California could produce more electricity with solar and nuclear, but there isn't the political will to do it.
hoosierva Champion Author Indianapolis Posts:1,036 Points:483,395 Joined:Jul 2011	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 8:57:24 AM Ignore hoosierva Report Abuse hahahaha, that is funny, yeah let's all join and hitch to that bandwagon.
DanMtz Champion Author Oakland Posts:3,360 Points:1,244,300 Joined:Oct 2009	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 8:20:39 AM Ignore DanMtz Report Abuse You see? No one is buying electric cars.
remay Champion Author Houston Posts:6,973 Points:2,119,340 Joined:May 2006	Message Posted: Apr 8, 2012 8:04:52 AM Ignore remay Report Abuse Wow! I wonder what customers pay/KWh THERE?
Vette1967 Champion Author Albany Posts:5,972 Points:1,277,725 Joined:Jun 2009	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 10:37:49 PM Ignore Vette1967 Report Abuse Send some of it to the East.
northeast2 Champion Author New York Posts:3,849 Points:1,007,200 Joined:Mar 2008	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 10:20:11 PM Ignore northeast2 Report Abuse "But they say the real issue is too much hydro, and not enough demand." Wait a minute. There's a part of the country that has too MUCH electricity? And for free, via the Bonneville Power Administration?
Ltdc Champion Author Long Island Posts:7,225 Points:1,679,820 Joined:Jul 2007	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 9:41:19 PM Ignore Ltdc Report Abuse They'll figure out how to store it one day.
Meowmy Champion Author Florida Posts:1,293 Points:348,855 Joined:Jan 2011	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 8:23:34 PM Ignore Meowmy Report Abuse Too bad there's not a capacitor big enough to 'hold' it.
aquarinut Champion Author British Columbia Posts:1,628 Points:436,855 Joined:Jul 2011	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 7:19:08 PM Ignore aquarinut Report Abuse Forced into wind farms and then punished for producing too much! How is green energy supposed to work again???
Cakes77 Champion Author Harrisburg Posts:5,171 Points:1,654,695 Joined:Aug 2006	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 5:28:02 PM Ignore Cakes77 Report Abuse Perhaps they can remove some of those dams out there now so that the salmon can get upstream.
Cakes77 Champion Author Harrisburg Posts:5,171 Points:1,654,695 Joined:Aug 2006	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 5:26:55 PM Ignore Cakes77 Report Abuse They need to get better at storing power.
ktbaeohana Champion Author Las Vegas Posts:2,311 Points:422,975 Joined:Mar 2010	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 3:12:58 PM Ignore ktbaeohana Report Abuse watch and see.
humblepie Champion Author Toledo Posts:34,303 Points:2,373,320 Joined:Mar 2006	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 2:58:10 PM Ignore humblepie Report Abuse premium prices, not lower prices how obamalike
asog75 All-Star Author Indiana Posts:836 Points:278,405 Joined:Aug 2011	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 2:42:17 PM Ignore asog75 Report Abuse another surplus!
BlackSbr Champion Author Nevada Posts:1,000 Points:564,925 Joined:Sep 2011	Message Posted: Apr 7, 2012 2:01:59 PM Ignore BlackSbr Report Abuse Hey hey hey