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by The_Beta 1747 days ago
Large solar farms take up a lot of land. Much more than wind does. It also makes that land useless for anything else other than solar.

Large wind farms generate more power than solar on a per acre basis and have a lot of land that can be used for cow/sheep grazing, buildings for other purposes, and so on.

Solar is getting so cheap that people can use them for "local solar" (in the industry, that's called distributed generation).

Rooftop solar on residential homes usually power the house first, then the battery of the house, then the grid. This could change if net metering is allowed though but usually only after your batteries are topped up.

Also you could just not have batteries (since it's so expensive). In that case any excess power will just go directly to the grid.
2 comments
7952 1747 days ago
It's actually common for sheep to be grazed under solar and it helps keep the grass trimmer. Or the grassland can be managed for wildlife and polinators.

My guess is that solar sites will be managed to improve soil quality. And eventually we will rotate the fields under solar to give the soil a rest. It is the perfect opportunity for a win-win.

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The_Beta 1747 days ago
Yea, they graze under/around solar panels but that's pretty much all you can do for a solar farm. Wind gives you more opportunity to use the land.

I don't see the solar site management thing happening by the way. A lot of time and effort goes into land siting and selection. It won't be that easy to just pack it up and move.

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willis936 1747 days ago
What's wrong with putting solar panels under wind farms?
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The_Beta 1747 days ago
Nothing and some companies are looking at that. It changes the dispatch characteristics but that's not a big deal.

I can see this happening more in the future when you kind of run out of space and have increased demand for power. First thing you'll probably do is upgrade the turbines to be bigger/more efficient. Then if you've maxed that out you can start adding solar panels underneath the turbines.

At the end of the day it's about lowering your costs to generate the power you need.

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