Record High Prices
The Independent reports Record-High Electricity Bills Draw Criticism to Spain’s Gov’t.
The government says that the latest hikes in electricity bills are driven by spiraling prices of so-called carbon certificates, which give companies the right to release carbon dioxide, gas imports that Spain needs to complete its energy mix, and the surging power demand of the summer months.
In the latest effort to rein in prices, lawmakers were voting Wednesday on whether to uphold the government’s move last month to cut the value-added tax on most households’ electricity bills from 21% to 10% until the end of this year and to scrap a 7% tax on power generation for at least three months. Utility companies pass on the cost of that tax to their customers.
Facua, one of Spain’s biggest consumer rights platforms, said that Spaniards will see on average a 35% hike on their July electricity bill compared to the same month in 2020. The increase comes at a time when many households are grappling with the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic.
Environment Minister Teresa Ribera said that she had written a letter to the EU’s executive branch stressing the need to reform the bloc’s electricity market, but warned that the upward trend in prices was likely to continue in the coming months.
Spain Urges EU to Act on Soaring Energy Prices
The Financial Times reports Spain Urges EU to Act on Soaring Energy Prices.
In an interview with the Financial Times, Teresa Ribera, Spain’s deputy prime minister for the environment, suggested that high prices and charges could provoke a backlash against carbon-cutting initiatives, with Spain in the “eye of the hurricane”.
Please Iron at at 2:00AM
In addition to complaining to the EU the Energy Department Has Suggestions like iron and cook at night.
The Facua-Consumers in Action organization claims that asking customers to use their appliances at night is “degrading” for the most vulnerable consumers. “You can’t make the consumer responsible for their bill being high just because they haven’t done the ironing or put their appliances on during the cheapest periods,” Facua states. “These times coincide with when people should be getting some rest.”
Why Are Spain’s Bills the Highest in the EU?
Spain currently counts on renewable energy sources for nearly 50% of its supply.
Guess what happens when you depend on unreliable sources?
Greens Demand More Clean Energy
But hey, the EU wants more clean energy.
Specifically, the EU seeks an energy tax that would drive up the costs of basically everything.
Sink America Plan
The Socialists and Greens in the US latched on to that idea.
On July 15, I commented The Greens Hijack Biden’s $3.5 Trillion Budget Proposal
On July 30, Arizona Senator Krysten Sinema expressed concerns over the plan to which AOC said “No Climate, No Deal”.
That is the preferred outcome of those with an ounce of common sense.
Previously, I proposed labeling the plan the Stagflation Guarantee Act of 2021.
However, that name is not catchy enough.
“Sink America Plan” is a better name for this proposed boondoggle.
Mish
1. Pumping water uphill to a storage tank. Very energy efficient. Obviously this is limited to certain geographies.
2. Hydrogen storage. Advantage is it can be done anywhere, has no pollution except water which can be also used to water a garden or something. Disadvantage is you lose up to 40% of the energy to conversion both to hydrogen and back to electric. Another disadvantage is the simple reality that hydrogen is extremely explosive.
3. Weight storage. This one is the most energy efficient of all I’ve seen, almost 100%. Disadvantage is the cost and size of the weight needed, but once installed will potentially last 1000 years with virtually no maintenance.
4. Ocean storage via tides. Advantage is that vast amounts of energy can be stored in a place like the San Fran bay by damming the bay with gates, opening them during high tide and closing them. Then allowing the water to leave during low tide generating hydropower. Disadvantages: You destroy shipping lanes, ecosystems and basically everything. Don’t recommend. haha.
After all, oil and gas is a form of energy storage.