The technology to store solar power when the sun isn’t shining doesn’t exist. Even a short loss of sunlight caused by an eclipse will create issues for solar electric power generation.
In California, the solar industry has been actively preparing for how to mitigate the issue. The solution? Natural gas.
In a recent article titled “The Coming Solar Eclipse Is a Big Moment for Natural Gas,” Fortune Magazine reported that natural gas is about to get a glimpse of its future role in the U.S. power mix as solar energy’s backup.
In the article, Steve Krum, a spokesman for First Solar Inc., the largest operator of solar plants in the U.S., explained that events like this are handled similar to a planned outage and routine operations. And Stephen Berberich, the president of California’s grid operator California ISO, told Fortune that natural gas will continue to be an important part of the state’s backup energy supply for renewables:
The upcoming eclipse is good evidence that natural gas does not impede the growth of renewables. Rather, natural gas and renewable industries work together to provide our country with reliable, clean and affordable electricity generation.