<
https://reasonstobecheerful.world/abandoned-coal-mines-gravity-batteries/>
"From Europe to North America, an energy revolution is breathing new life into
empty, long-forgotten coal mine shafts — by repurposing them into places to
store renewable energy.
Using “gravity batteries,” these underground facilities aim to tackle one of
renewable energy’s greatest challenges: storage. The method is simple: Excess
renewable energy is used to power winches that lift heavy weights — such as
containers filled with sand or rock — up the mine shaft. When additional energy
is needed, these weights are released, generating power as they descend.
This approach not only gives these disused mines a second life but also offers
economic and environmental benefits to communities once reliant on coal.
Hundreds of thousands of abandoned mines — about 550,000 in the U.S. alone —
pose economic, environmental and safety risks. In some areas, these old shafts
have caused collapses or polluted groundwater, while in others, the loss of
mining jobs has hit local economies hard. Meanwhile, as renewable energy scales
up, storage limitations become a pressing issue, especially with solar and
wind, which are naturally intermittent. This year, solar is expected to surpass
coal as a leading global power source, according to the International Energy
Agency, highlighting the need for reliable storage to balance supply and
demand. During the U.K.’s 2020 lockdown, for example, National Grid warned of
potential blackouts when energy demand dropped by 20 percent, leading to excess
renewable power that went unused.
Gravity batteries offer a straightforward but powerful — and cost-effective —
way to address both of these problems at once.
Their potential is already being realized. In Rudong, near Shanghai, the first
commercial grid-scale gravity battery was connected to the grid in December
2023. Capable of storing up to 100 megawatt hours of energy, it can power nine
homes for an entire year using only stored electricity. Across China, nine
additional projects are in development, while in Switzerland, a commercial
demonstration unit has been connected to the national grid for testing since
2019, showcasing the technology’s promise on a global scale. And now, other
countries, from Finland to Australia, are getting on board."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
