nuclear-news

I came across one or two proposals over the last few weeks for mega sized pumped storage facilities in Scotland to back up intermittent renewables (such as wind), which I thought it would be worth commenting on.

Figure 1: Further energy storage will be needed to backup renewables in future, although how much storage is a matter of some debate

The first proposal involves taking Loch Morar, a freshwater loch 300m deep, but one just a few hundred metres from the shores of Loch Nevis (salt water). The plan would be to build a dam 280m high across a narrow pass to the North, which would allow an upper reservoir to be created 300m high. Water could then be pumped in either direction to create 600m of head and provide up to 1800 GWh’s of energy storage. Further options to build another dam to the south and pump water in…