Humor and Satire
Digging a Hole
Why LEAPS is not economically viable
What credible persons and agencies say
Lies, Inaccuracies, and Misleading Statements
References, documents and links
Digging a hole
Over the past 20 years, FERC has received seven license applications for pumped storage projects. Of these seven, three were denied licenses. The other four were given licenses but the projects were never built and their licenses have been rescinded.
The message is that pumped storage is not a viable business model. It costs too much to build a reservoir, piping, a tailrace, and then a power generation plant. The model of buying electricity when the electricity rates are low (to fill a reservoir) and then selling when rates are high (releasing water from the reservoir) is not viable to cover the construction costs -- unless, the project is heavily subsidized.