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[Nickbat]

It was hailed as Britain’s first “green” island and a glimpse of the what the future could hold for the rest of the country.

But when the inhabitants of the remote Scottish island of Eigg put their faith in the wind and rain to provide all their electricity they did not reckon for one thing – mild weather.

Now the 95 residents are being asked not to use kettles, toasters or other kitchen appliances after uncharacteristically mild weather caused a critical shortage of power.

As a result, the community owned power company has placed the island on “red alert” and issued notices effectively rationing electricity.

It has had to revert to using old-fashioned diesel power to run a backup generator to keep the lights on.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/energy/hydro_electricenergy/7858960/Power-rationed-on-green-island-Eigg-after-mild-weather-causes-drought.html

OK, sniggering over.

Hands up those who can imagine a similar situation occurring on the UK mainland in the not too distant future? 

[PhilRich]

Wot? No solar panels for a 'rainy day'?

[Dishevelled Den]

It was hailed as Britain’s first “green” island and a glimpse of the what the future could hold for the rest of the country.

But when the inhabitants of the remote Scottish island of Eigg put their faith in the wind and rain to provide all their electricity they did not reckon for one thing – mild weather.

Now the 95 residents are being asked not to use kettles, toasters or other kitchen appliances after uncharacteristically mild weather caused a critical shortage of power.

As a result, the community owned power company has placed the island on “red alert” and issued notices effectively rationing electricity.

It has had to revert to using old-fashioned diesel power to run a backup generator to keep the lights on.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/energy/hydro_electricenergy/7858960/Power-rationed-on-green-island-Eigg-after-mild-weather-causes-drought.html

OK, sniggering over.

Hands up those who can imagine a similar situation occurring on the UK mainland in the not too distant future? 

on the UK mainland in the not too distant future?

I welcome the attempts presently being made to broaden the source of generated energy in our nation. 8-)

However I'm afraid that I will be quite uncharacteristically sniggering when all this amounts to naught.

The reason for my recklessness?  The present Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change - the Right Honourable Christopher Huhne, MP and lesbian turner ( )

[tidla]

sods law, put all your efforts into producing leccy from the inevitable constant rainfall and... sunshine!!

got to admire there efforts thou.

got to strike a balance as they have found out with more solar gain.

some of these homes are mega insulated and even in the coldest of seasons are kept warm with limited means.

[Nickbat]

Wot? No solar panels for a 'rainy day'?

 

They're going to get that one covered, though:

The trust is now planning to spend part of its £300,000 share of the prize money on more solar panels to prevent a repeat of the shortages in future years.

Everyone knows how sunny it is up there...

[Dishevelled Den]

Furthermore, if they can't make this work in such a northern location, how do they expect it to work in Sunningdale or Kensington or any other inland place you care to mention?

[Nickbat]

It was hailed as Britain’s first “green” island and a glimpse of the what the future could hold for the rest of the country.

But when the inhabitants of the remote Scottish island of Eigg put their faith in the wind and rain to provide all their electricity they did not reckon for one thing – mild weather.

Now the 95 residents are being asked not to use kettles, toasters or other kitchen appliances after uncharacteristically mild weather caused a critical shortage of power.

As a result, the community owned power company has placed the island on “red alert” and issued notices effectively rationing electricity.

It has had to revert to using old-fashioned diesel power to run a backup generator to keep the lights on.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/energy/hydro_electricenergy/7858960/Power-rationed-on-green-island-Eigg-after-mild-weather-causes-drought.html

OK, sniggering over.

Hands up those who can imagine a similar situation occurring on the UK mainland in the not too distant future? 

on the UK mainland in the not too distant future?

I welcome the attempts presently being made to broaden the source of generated energy in our nation. 8-)

However I'm afraid that I will be quite uncharacteristically sniggering when all this amounts to naught.

The reason for my recklessness?  The present Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change - the Right Honourable Christopher Huhne, MP and lesbian turner ( )

Don't worry about Huhne, Zulu. It's not just about one man. After all, we also have Greg Barker, the Climate Change Minister.

"...the MP for Bexhill and Battle is a fighter and unafraid to court controversy. Four years ago, the father-of-three was mired in scandal after leaving his wife, Celeste, for a male interior designer. He was also caught up in the MPs’ expenses furore, having made £320,000 profit on a flat he bought with the help of his taxpayer-funded expenses.

In one sense, Barker is ideally placed for his new role, having worked for the Russian oil company Sibneft, once owned by Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/greenpolitics/7860450/Greg-Barker-climate-change-minister-We-cannot-go-on-relying-on-foreign-fuel.html

On second thoughts, Zulu, worry about them both.

[tidla]

the new solar panels do not require direct sunlight, just daylight to produce leccy. prices coming down-slowly.

[hoofing it]

Furthermore, if they can't make this work in such a northern location, how do they expect it to work in Sunningdale or Kensington or any other inland place you care to mention?

mega long extension cables to Skye

[Nickbat]

the new solar panels do not require direct sunlight, just daylight to produce leccy. prices coming down-slowly.

They get a lot of that in winter up there, don't they?

[Matchless]

House a few doors away from me has no roof after a fault in a solar panel or the wiring at the w/e (still investigating).
By the time the fire brigade arrived 2/3 of the roof was burning so they had to use a turntable ladder and a large hose so all the ceilings and house contents are trash.
If you go for solar electric panels use a reputable installer who follows the installation rules and fits the correct (mega expensive) cables.

[hoofing it]

the new solar panels do not require direct sunlight, just daylight to produce leccy. prices coming down-slowly.

They get a lot of that in winter up there, don't they?

Think you mean summer

[Nickbat]

the new solar panels do not require direct sunlight, just daylight to produce leccy. prices coming down-slowly.

They get a lot of that in winter up there, don't they?

Think you mean summer

Must confess. I was being sarcastic. 

[Banjax]

so you agree we should spend millions of taxpayers money to hook Eigg (pop 100 ish) to the mains then?
 

luckily the residents of Eigg are a hardy breed - i'm sure they'll be OK - they were well used to power cuts before the renewable energy grid was brought online 

you really don't want this to work Nickbat do you? thats the spirit, keep ignoring the need for renewables and mocking those that are developing it for the rest of us.....when the time comes 

[Nickbat]

Sniggering aside, though, there is a salutory lesson to be learned here.

We CANNOT rely on alternatives alone to power the UK. It is simply a non-starter. We have to have a reliable source of base load, whether it be coal, gas or nuclear generated.

Rationing electricity on the mainland would cause the economy to collapse and would have huge social implications. Forget looking back to Heath's infamous 3-day week, saying that we survived it OK; it was before the advent of the microprocessor. Look around you; there is barely anything you can do these days that does not rely 100% on a powered microchip. Take away that power on a widespread scale, even for a short period, and you have disaster.

It really is that scary.