I've been pondering this situation for some time and couldn't agree more with the article.....
Energy companies WILL have reduced revenue. No ifs, no buts. People WILL go solar and their daily usage WILL fall.
So my ponderance is.... how are the power companies going to cope with this?
I'll say here I am in WA, so we have no electricity market competition whatsoever (that I know of!!! If other sandgropers put me straight I'll be glad to hear it!!! I see options for BUSINESS..... but not residential...?)
One thing Synergy does here in WA is charge a DAILY SUPPLY CHARGE for electricity... I reckon this is where they will attempt to claw back the lost revenue.
At the moment it stands at 48c and change per day, every day. So as long as one is connected to the grid, you pay that charge...
Here is what I will call the 'fear factor' will play out..... I'd guess most if not all households would want solar + storage. BUT..... the COSTS of being COMPLETELY off-grid because of the hardware required (at current prices) is probably too prohibitive for most households to achieve. Remember, here in WA it gets HOT in the summer, and the summer seems to go for longer and longer.... So households will need a HIGH storage capacity to cope with running an AC unit (assuming reverse cycle here) long into the evening.... Evaporative will be far cheaper of course... As would ceiling fans.... So there would be a graduated scale of off-grid ability depending on the TYPE of appliances one has in the house... (FWIW... I have a gas oven, so my biggest electrical draw is the fridge as it's always on, the toaster when it's on too and my RC AC unit rated at 12.4kw, when it's on and ramped up to most rooms in the house..... My lights are all LEDs and I use as many of my other daily appliances like dishwasher and washing machine during the day so my PV system runs them!!!)
Efficiencies are improving all the time, so maybe there will be a point in the future it WILL all fall into place.... But I don't think we're there QUITE yet....
PLUS.... and I think THIS is the kicker..... there is some comfort in knowing there grid is connected in the event of any shortfall/emergency...
I would think there is a FEAR factor of being totally off-grid for most urban households.... Simply because what happens if the power runs out????? So I think the comfort of having that backup is still VERY strong....
So I believe Synergy will start to jack up this daily supply charge as daily consumption falls, because that is the last element of the 'captive audience' scenario they have...
Will be interesting to see how this plays out!!!!
Any other thoughts would be AWESOME to hear too!!!!
