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#BatteryStorage

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Sherco coal-fired power plant (largest in Minnesota) will be replaced by solar arrays being constructed on site.

*New* They're adding an iron-air battery to the solar installation to provide power when there's no sun.

PV arrays will produce up to 710 MW, whereas the first Fe-air batteries will be 10 MW. Not the scale needed, but Form Energy just started manufacturing, so this is a pilot of sorts.

fresh-energy.org/xcel-energys-
#CleanEnergy #batteries #ClimateAction #solar #SolarPV #BatteryStorage

Fresh Energy · Xcel Energy’s multiday energy storage demonstration - Fresh EnergyIf you live in Minnesota, it’s likely you’ve seen media coverage about the work underway at the site of Xcel Energy’s Sherco power plant as the utility adds both solar… Continue reading Xcel Energy’s multiday energy storage demonstration

"Technologies that help us address climate change still have the potential to cause harm, and taking that seriously is crucial." technologyreview.com/2025/02/1

“The EPA tested for one of the pollutants that measures air quality index – particulate size. This is what the Monterey Bay Air Resource District (MBARD) does when it produces an evaluation of air quality. Neither agency tests for heavy metals. Heavy metals testing was done by Dr. Ivano Aiello of the Moss Landing Marine Labs around the Elkhorn Slough and by the California Department of Toxic Substances Control with Monterey County Environmental Health Department.”—Supervisor Glenn Church, District 2, Monterey County Board of Supervisors mailchi.mp/co/supervisor-churc

MIT Technology Review · What a major battery fire means for the future of energy storageBy Casey Crownhart

This is a wake up call: A fire at Vistra Energy's Moss Landing battery storage facility in California destroyed thousands of lithium batteries – and a significant amount of the state's clean energy storage capacity. Fire was allowed to burn itself out rather than engaging with it directly. Pollution post fire are water pollution from hazardous chemicals related to lithium batteries as well as plastics. #water #pollution #hazards #lithium #batterystorage #energy. newscientist.com/article/24646

New Scientist · Fire at world’s largest battery facility is a clean energy setbackBy Jeremy Hsu
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"The [#LithiumBatteryFire], which is more than 300 miles away from and totally unrelated to the Southern California wildfires, was 'raging out of control Thursday night, sending up huge flames and clouds of hazardous black smoke,' according to local news reports.

"It was reported at the #MossLandingPowerPlant located in northern #MontereyCounty around 3 p.m.

"Evacuations of about 1,500 people were ordered for the area, and the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office called other agencies in the county to help with the emergency.

"The facility, owned by #VistraEnergy, a Texas company, is one of the largest #BatteryStorage plants in the world, The Mercury News reported. It holds tens of thousands of #LithiumBatteries, which are used to store electricity generated from #SolarPower.

"'There’s no way to sugarcoat it. This is a disaster, is what it is,' Monterey County Supervisor Glen Church told KSBW-TV. 'This is extremely disconcerting.'

"The plant is located on the site of a now-shuttered 1950s-era PG&E Moss Landing natural gas plant, which was converted into a BESS facility in 2020. The site can store a total of 750 megawatts of energy, which is sold to PG&E, The Mercury News reported. A separate 182-megawatt battery storage plant that has 256 #Tesla '#Megapack' battery packs is also located on the north side of the site. According to The Mercury News, that facility did not appear to be burning.

"The cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but past reports indicate that this is the third fire at the facility."

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So yeah, I'm pretty sure the #RockyMountains are more geologically stable than #YuccaMountain or #WIPP in #NewMexico. And with #ClimateChange trashing coastlines, it's probably NOT a good idea to keep storing used #NuclearFuel next to the plants (which are usually situated near water sources). However, we should only use #NuclearPower to get us through until #renewables and #BatteryStorage becomes efficient and non-toxic -- and NOT poison the future for garbled recipes or greedy CEOs (any more than we already have)!
#NuclearWaste #NoNukesForAI #NuclearWasteRepository