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The Guy who made jeff elite of Anxiety Cafe.
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The Green Energy Plan (OUTDATED)
The Green Energy Plan is an ongoing initiative in San Martinia to transition the nation to a low carbon, environmentally sound, secure, and reliable energy supply. It details a renewable energy transition that relies heavily on wind and solar resources, which are the best in the world, but also on energy-demand management efforts. It seeks to upgrade the total proportion of renewables in the San Martinian energy matrix from its current 45% to over 70% by 2037, resulting in the decommission of all coal-fired power plants and a significant amount of natural gas-based thermal stations. The initiative hopes to at least halve the carbon emissions from the electricity sector, which is the second largest source of carbon dioxide emissions in the nation.Initially put forward by the Sanchez administration in 2027, the proposal quickly rose to the national spotlight as political figures declared their support. The plan has undergone a number of modifications, most significantly those involving the energy trading agreement reached with the FSR in early 2028 under President Rojas. Under this agreement, San Martinian solar and wind production, combined with the FSR's hydroelectric capacity, will grow to cover 70% of both nations' energy matrices. The plan is still in the early phase of its rollout, and will likely see further modifications in the future.
Seeking to take advantage of San Martinia's great solar and wind energy potential, this initiative focuses investments into various electricity generation and storage technologies, alongside transmission infrastructure upgrading and hydrogen production and shipping centers. Funded by energy subsidies and foreign and domestic investments, the initiative lowers both capital costs and levelized costs of electricity in a market where these technologies have already reached grid parity, thus de-incentivizing further fossil fuel-based power plants as renewable technologies are poised to take over the energy matrix.
San Martinia's Renewables Potential
The Atacama Desert, located in the nation's northwest, is both the oldest and driest desert in the world. The Humboldt Current and South Pacific High both work to discourage precipitation in the region, while the Andes Mountains and Coastal Range prevent any moisture from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, respectively, from entering the desert plateau. The barren region stretches over 100,000 km2 of the northern Pacific coast and receives little to no cloud cover for the entire year. All of these factors combined result in the desert receiving the globe's highest levels of both horizontal and direct normal irradiation.
The great availability of the solar resource provides ample opportunity for exploitation. Photovoltaic (PV) plants, for example, can operate with capacity factors in excess of 30% and a levelized cost of electricity of $21/MWh, while concentrated solar power (CSP) plants can operate with capacity factors exceeding 85% and levelized costs of electricity of $55/MWh. For comparison, PV CF and LCOE usually ranges near 10-20% and $60/MWh, respectively, while CSP values are 45-50% and $100/MWh. In the Atacama Desert, these solar technologies can provide more electricity than elsewhere and at lower costs. The region is estimated to have 1,810 GW of technically accessible solar potential (1,260 for PV and 550 for CSP), which is far more than South America's current installed capacity.
Patagonia, in the nation's south, lies at some of the Southern Hemispheres largest latitudes, far south of most major landforms. As a result, the westerlies, which are the prevailing wind of the region, are not subject to the usual wind-buffering effect that land has, and continue at great speeds. These winds, called the roaring forties, are responsible for transferring some of the warmer temperatures of equatorial regions to the south. Additionally, due to the lower heights of the Andes and the lack of large expanses of forests, especially in southern and eastern Patagonia, these high-speed winds are relatively unhindered as they blow across Patagonia. The geomorphology of the region, as a large desert plateau, also increases wind speeds. As a result, the region receives the largest non-glacial wind speeds in the world, only exceeded by remote Greenland and Antarctica.
This region has average wind speeds exceeded 10 m/s, and so wind power is very attractive. The capacity factor of wind turbines here exceeds 60%, compared to averages of around 35%, and the LCOE of $29.5/MWh, compared to normal values of $40/MWh, highlight the ability of the region to deliver abundant and cheap wind power. It's estimated to have over 2,000 GW of wind potential, again far exceeding South America's current installed capacity.
The Transmission Infrastructure Aspect
The variability of solar and wind resources proves difficult to handle for the transmission grid. Rapid changes in frequency, which must be kept constant nationwide, combined with random injections of often low quality (non-standard) power into the grid, affecting voltage levels, can stress the grid. Additionally, this plan sees the decommissioning of many conventional power plants, which inherently provide the grid with ancillary effects to help stabilize it. As a result, this plan requires a restructuring of the transmission grid.
The nation currently operates with one united wide area synchronous grid. The Transmission Infrastructure Aspect seeks to put an end to that. The nation will be divided into 11 regions for the purposes of this plan; each region will contain one node. Antofagasta will be the node for the Atacama region (the provinces of Tarapaca and Antofagasta); Vallenar for the Transversal Valleys region (the province of Coquimbo); Santiago de Chile for the Northern Central Valley region (the provinces of Santiago de Chile and Valparaiso); Temuco for the Southern Central Valley region (the provinces of Concepcion, Chiloe, and the western part of Wallmapu); San Miguel de Tucuman for the Northwestern region (the provinces of Salta, Tucuman, and Santiago del Estero); Resistencia for the Northeastern region (the province of Chaco and the northern parts of Santa Fe and Mesopotamia); Cordoba for the Central region (the province of Cordoba); Mendoza for the Cuyo region (the provinces of Cuyo, San Juan, and La Rioja); Buenos Aires for the Pampas region (the southern parts of Mesopotamia and Santa Fe and the northern part of Buenos Aires); Rio Colorado for the Comahue region (the provinces of La Pampa, Neuquen, Rio Negro, the eastern part of Wallmapu, and the southern part of Buenos Aires); Comodoro Rivadavia for the Central Patagonian region (the provinces of Chubut and San Jorge); and Punta Arenas for the Southern Patagonian region (the provinces of Santa Cruz and Magallanes).
Regions with a high penetration of variable renewable energy sources (specifically the Atacama, Transversal Valleys, Southern Patagonian, and Central Patagonian regions) will be disconnected from the rest of the grid. Existing cross-region links will be outfitted with back-to-back converters to isolate these regional grids. This prevents the destabilizing effects of these power sources from spreading to the rest of the nation. The other regional grids will remain connected as a national grid.
Additionally, a renewable energy supergrid will be built using VSC-HVDC technology to connect the nodes of the different regions. Each node will have large converter stations and will act as the only connection between the traditional grid and the new supergrid. Any new variable power stations will be connected solely to the nodes, not to the local grid, to reduce destabilization. This HVDC technology has reduced power losses compared to its HVAC counterpart, but, more importantly, it has great stabilizing effects on non-synchronous grids. As a result, connections between power stations and regional grids (through the nodes), and between isolated regional grids and the national grid will counteract destabilization. Connections within a synchronous grid, such as those connecting nodes in the national grid, do not have the same stabilizing effects; however, as the national grid is isolated from the destabilization of the variable power sources, this is irrelevant.
The Solar Aspect
The Solar Aspect of the plan takes advantage of not only the Atacama's solar resources, but also favorable market conditions. The region, despite it's relatively low population, has high energy demands, mainly from extensive mining and refining processes. As a result, energy use in the region tends to be constant and consistent. Additionally, it is the world's largest producer of copper and nitrates, in addition to significant glass. All are relevant for solar power technologies.
This aspect takes advantage of two forms of solar power: photovoltaics, which directly converts horizontal irradiation into direct-current electricity, and concentrated solar power, which uses mirrors to concentrate solar rays onto a receiver to heat up molten salts, which in turn power a steam turbine. Both technologies offer different benefits: PV has low capital costs and lower LCOE, while CSP can provide grid ancillary services (maintaining power quality) and, importantly, is dispatchable (energy production can be controlled and altered) due to cheap integrated thermal energy storage. However, PV is highly variable and unable to provide power at night, while CSP has high capital costs and a higher LCOE.
Hybridizing the two systems has distinct benefits. PV/CSP systems have lowered capital costs and LCOE than CSP-alone systems and higher capacity factors than either PV-alone or CSP-alone systems. Additionally, the CSP subsystem can provide power through the night and offset the PV subsystem's variability, while still providing ancillary services to the grid.
All three systems (PV-alone, CSP-alone, and PV/CSP) are supported by this aspect, in the form of energy subsidies and reduced regulatory barriers. PV/CSP systems especially, as a high-efficiency design, are more qualified for subsidies, due to their dispatchability and grid stabilizing effects. Funding is further ensured from the plethora of mining companies in the region, as traditional diesel-based electricity is highly expensive in the region.
The Wind Aspect
The Wind Aspect seeks to use the wind resources of Patagonia, especially the southern region. Population is much higher here than in the Atacama, but it lacks the stable energy demands of mining facilities, so energy use is variable and mostly municipal. The region also lacks nearby relevant resources and industry. As a result, market conditions are not as favorable for wind as the Atacama was for solar.
Wind turbines convert the wind into alternating-current electricity by using it to spin blades connected to a turbine. Wind turbines, like photovoltaics, are extremely variable, but have low capital costs and low LCOE. As a result, wind power, while having high potential, is grid-destabilizing.
However, the region is also home to much of San Martinia's hydroelectric capacity, with a number of dams on the nearby Baker, Pascua, and Santa Cruz Rivers, and even more on the Limay and Neuquen Rivers further north. These already existing dams provide many of the same benefits as CSP; they are dispatchable, able to scale up and down production to compensate for variabilities, and they provide ancillary stabilizing effects to the grid. As a result, they encourage wind farm proliferation, which is further encouraged through subsidies.
The Hydrogen Aspect
At current energy use rates, the solar and wind potential of the nation far exceeds its needs; in fact, it far exceeds all of South America's. As a result, the Hydrogen Aspect seeks to convert excess electricity into hydrogen. Hydrogen is valuable because it can be used for a wide variety of purposes, such as in the production of ammonia. It can also be burned as a fuel in fuel cells or in power plants, providing power to distant grids or vehicles.
Hydrogen is traditionally produced from fossil fuels, in an extremely environmentally damaging process. This hydrogen, called gray or blue hydrogen (the latter only if paired with expensive carbon capture strategies) represents most of the global supply. Conversion of water into hydrogen using renewable energies (called green hydrogen) is not new, but is usually within the $6.5-10/kg range, which is uneconomical. San Martinian solar and wind power, however, can produce hydrogen in the $1.8-3/kg and $2.2-4.4/kg range, respectively, which is competitive with traditional hydrogen production processes, except without any adverse environmental effects.
The Hydrogen Aspect involves the creation of the San Martinian Hydrogen Production Company, a state-owned enterprise that will oversee the nation's hydrogen-related activities. Using funds from foreign investors, such as the DEU, the company will establish grid-connected hydrogen production plants. These plants will utilize electrolyzer technology to combine water and electricity to form oxygen and hydrogen. Similarly, the company will establish hydrogen liquification centers at port facilities to facilitate the shipping of the fuel.
The Desalination Sector Aspect
The great aridity of the Atacama Desert allows excellent solar conditions. However, it causes a variety of other restrictions. Large population centers, such as Antofagasta and Arica, do not have stable access to potable water. Additionally, the mining and related industrial processes of the area also require great water use. This has resulted in various conflicts over water rights. These conflicts over the resource are sure to increase, as the solar panels of PV plants and heliostats of CSP plants all require freshwater to clean surfaces and prevent corrosion.
To alleviate these water shortages, a number of desalination plants will be constructed in coastal areas. Using reverse osmosis technology, these plants will take up seawater and convert it into freshwater for municipal, mining, or power plant use. These desalination plants, however, tend to use great amounts of energy, and, due to the high cost of conventional electricity in the area, were generally considered nonviable. With the increasingly reduced costs of electricity thanks to solar energy, these are now able to be installed.
Another traditionally arid area, eastern Patagonia, will also have desalination plants installed, thanks to nearby wind power. The need for these, however, is not as great in most major cities due to nearby rivers. As a result, it is mainly intended for use for cities like Comodoro Rivadavia, which lack a nearby freshwater source. Drought-prone areas of the west coast, like the transversal valleys of Coquimbo or even the northern Central Valley, may also have desalination plants installed as necessary.
The Heating Sector Aspect
The combustion of methane, commonly known as natural gas, creates carbon dioxide, the greatest greenhouse gas in terms of emissions globally. However, methane itself is a greenhouse gas, far more potent than carbon dioxide. As a result, avoiding natural gas use is imperative in reducing the nation's greenhouse gas emissions. Aside from use in power plants to produce electricity, natural gas is often used for heating purposes in many residential and commercial buildings.
To reduce the role of natural gas in heating and thus the sector's greenhouse gas emissions, new building codes will require alternate space heating technologies, especially heat pumps or direct electrical heating, which both use electricity for heating purposes. Existing buildings are also encouraged to switch to these technologies with tax breaks.
The Green Energy Plan: An Overview
Seeking to take advantage of San Martinia's great solar and wind energy potential, this initiative focuses inv
into solar parks, wind farms, and associated transmission infrastructure. It is divided into four phases, and is estimated to be complete within ten years.
Phase I, or the Local Energy Phase, involves initial construction of solar parks and wind farms in Atacama and Patagonia, respectively. These renewable power plants will be connected to the national grid via traditional AC connections; however, these regions will adopt energy curtailment and islanding policies during times of extreme production (that is, times in which production is more than all local needs) to prevent overloading the grid and causing cascading blackouts. In times of normal production, hydroelectric and fossil-fuel based plants will scale up or down production to compensate for fluctuations. These regions will also establish energy goals describing how much of their local needs they want solar and wind to cover, and how many fossil fuel-based plants they wish to decommission. As solar and wind energy production increases and these goals are consistently met, Phase II will begin.
Phase II, called the National Energy Phase, is similar to Phase I, but will occur in a staggered fashion in different nodes: San Miguel de Tucuman, Santiago de Chile, Puerto Montt, Cordoba, Comodoro Rivadavia, Rio Colorado, Buenos Aires, and Resistentica. The phase begins with the construction of VSC-HVDC lines connecting solar centers to San Miguel de Tucuman, and wind centers to Comodoro Rivadavia. After their local goals are met, further VSC-HVDC lines will be constructed to other nodes, until a national renewable energy HVDC grid is formed. Once the local needs of all nodes are met, Phase III will begin.
Phase III, the International Energy Phase, is the third part of the plan. In this phase, the San Martinian HVDC grid will be connected to its FSR counterpart in several cross-border lines, such as between Resistencia and Itaipu Dam or between the solar centers and Arequipa. Once this is completed, San Martinian renewables will power the FSR as well, and, thanks to the latter's extensive hydropower storage capacity, solar and wind production can increase further to meet the goal of 70% of both nations' electricity demand. An additional line, connecting Cape Thetis and the Patagonian wind centers, will allow the former to access these energy resources as well.
Phase IV, the Hydrogen Phase, is the fourth and final of the plan. This phase involves continued increases in the solar and wind resources of the nation, but in order to prevent energy curtailments, the excess electricity will be converted into hydrogen through electrolysis. This hydrogen, when liquified, can be shipped worldwide, allowing San Martinia to export its great energy resources. Most significantly, the hydrogen, called green hydrogen because it is created with no adverse environmental effects, can be used to fuel hydrogen-based transportation sectors, like those in Europe.
Solar Energy
Solar Potential
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The global horizontal radiation map, shown above to the right, is a measure of global levels of total solar irradiation, as the sum of direct and diffuse irradiation. San Martinia has 568,668 km2 of land receiving greater than 6.20 kWh/m2 of horizontal irradiation, which is relatively low compared to Egypt's 658,492 km2, Saudi Arabia's 1,255,319 km2, and Australia's 1,438,454 km2. However, of San Martinia's 568,668 km2, 294,453 km2 receives greater than 6.80 kWh/m2 of horizontal irradiation, with a maximum of 7.41 kWh/m2. This is extremely high when the maximums of Egypt (6.71 kWh/m2), Saudi Arabia (6.62 kWh/m2), and Australia (6.37 kWh/m2) are taken into account; San Martinia has the highest levels of horizontal irradiation in the world, and quite a lot of area exposed to it.
The specific photovoltaic power output map, shown above to the left, measures the potential of utilizing solar energy through photovoltaics. San Martinia has 708,944 km2 of land with greater than 5.20 kWh/kWp of specific photovoltaic power output, again relatively low compared to Egypt's 847,688 km2, Saudi Arabia's 872,489 km2, and Australia's 1,676,914 km2. However, 503,286 km2 of San Martinian land has greater than 5.80 kWh/kWp of specific photovoltaic power output with a maximum of 6.53 kWh/kWp. All three of the other countries have 0 km2 at this level, because their maximums are 5.74, 5.67, and 5.32 kWh/kWp for Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Australia, respectively. San Martinia, then, has the greatest potential for photovoltaics use in the world.
Production Technology: Hybrid PV-CSP Solar Parks
San Martinia, in the Atacama desert and surrounding areas, is the world's most ideal place for the development of solar energy technologies. Two of these technologies, photovoltaics and concentrated solar power, will be used to harness these extensive solar energies as efficiently and effectively as possible for use in the nation's energy matrix in the form of hybrid flat PV-CSP systems. Such solar power stations combine both PV and CSP technology.
Each hybrid plant pairs a PV and a CSP system due to complementary aspects. The unneeded and damaging heat of the PV system, for example, is transferred to the molten salts of the CSP system through the heat exchanging water, making more effective use of both the light and thermal aspects of solar energy compared to the use of separate systems. Hybrid systems allow shared controls, land, and grid connections, reducing costs of installation. Together, both types (direct and diffuse) of horizontal irradiation are converted to electricity, rather than one or the other.
Storage Technology: Molten Salts Thermal Energy Storage
Rather than being directly sent to the steam turbine, heated molten salts can instead be stored in insulated tanks until needed at a later time, when they can be converted into electricity. As such, the molten salts serve as a form of thermal energy storage for the grid. During the day, when both the PV and CSP systems are receiving solar input, the PV-produced electricity can enter the grid, while the CSP-produced electricity is stored as heated molten salts until needed, such as at night. Thus, hybrid PV-CSP plants can maintain a constant minimum electricity output, within a capacity factor range (generator output as a percentage of maximum output) of 80-90%, similar to fossil fuel power plants.
The constant minimum electricity output depends on molten salts storage capacity, as these will serve as the only power generation during the times of lowest production (at night). These plants incorporate storage tanks with approximately 14-18 hours worth of energy storage, allowing the constant minimum electricity output to be maintained 24/7 but unable to generate power for any notable period of time should solar irradiation significantly decrease, such as during extended cloud cover. Because of geographic characteristics of the Atacama desert, these concerns are minimal and additional storage is unnecessary.
Wind Energy
Wind Potential
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The mean wind speed map, shown above to the right, displays global wind patterns and can give a general idea of wind resources of an area. The top 10% of San Martinia in terms of wind speed has 11.95 m/s; the windiest nations in the world, aside form San Martinia, are Greenland (13.63 m/s), Iceland (11.38 m/s), and New Zealand (11.39 m/s). The top 10% windiest areas of the San Martinian provinces of Santa Cruz, Magallanes, Aysen, Chubut, Mendoza, and San Juan all receive wind speeds over 11.95 m/s, with the highest being Magallanes's 16.84 m/s. Only Iceland's Western Region (11.98 m/s) and New Zealand's Canterbury (12.25 m/s), Southern Islands (13.99 m/s), and Southland (12.25 m/s) regions receive over 11.95 m/s winds, and all fall below those of Santa Cruz, Magallanes, and Aysen. As such, aside from Greenland, San Martinian southern Patagonia has the highest wind speeds in the world, with Andean Cuyo also having significant winds.
The mean wind power density map, shown above to the left, shows a clearer picture of how much of the wind resources are available to be exploited. The top 10% windiest areas of San Martinia have a mean wind power density of 2,068 W/m2, compared to 2,238, 2,132, and 2,407 W/m2 for Greenland, Iceland, and New Zealand, respectively. The San Martinian provinces of Magallanes, Aysen, and Santa Cruz all exceeded the national data for those three nations. Additionally, of all the subdivisions in all three nations, Santa Cruz and Aysen were only exceeded by one (Greenland's Kujallek municipality), while Magallanes was not exceeded by any. Therefore, southern Patagonia has the highest wind power potential in the world.
Production Technology: Hybrid HA/VAWT Wind Farms
Onshore wind farms will utilize a number of techniques to ensure maximum efficiencies. Horizontal-axis wind turbines will be fitted with two counter-rotational rotors. The wake created by the upwind rotor, in this scenario, feeds into the smaller, downwind rotor. Such dual-rotor counter-rotational HAWTs have 60% greater energy production than their single-rotor counterparts. Additionally, because of the large distance requirements between HAWTs, vertical-axis wind turbines will be co-located and integrated into the system. The HAWTs and VAWTs will be vertically staggered, with the former higher up, allowing the latter to use undisturbed wind energy. Such a vertically-staggered hybrid system directly increases energy production through the additional turbines but also indirectly by increasing turbulence and thus wake recovery, having an overall 32% energy production increase compared to HAWT-only farms.
Offshore wind farms face unique design, construction, installation, and maintenance qualities that make the use of VAWTs the most economically and energetically efficient. These wind turbines will be fixed with a monopile foundation. They require less and easier maintenance, can be located closer together, and have higher energy production rates, which all favor VAWT deployment for offshore farms.
Storage Technology: N/A
Wind in Patagonia is not only of high speed, but also consistent; as such, the wind farms will always be producing electricity in some amount. As a result, extensive storage is unnecessary. Instead, nearby hydroelectric facilities and their fossil-fuel based counterparts will simply scale up or down electricity production as necessary, to compensate for variabilities in wind energy production and ensure demand is met.
Transmission Grid Technology
San Martinia's existing HVAC transmission grid will be supplemented by the building of a separate HVDC renewables grid. This latter grid will be connected to the former at certain nodes, specifically the Atacama solar centers, San Miguel de Tucuman, Santiago de Chile, Puerto Montt, Cordoba, Resistencia, Buenos Aires, Rio Colorado, Comodoro Rivadavia, and the Patagonia wind centers. This is because the nation's existing grid is synchronous, requiring a standard frequency for all lines and all electricity production plants. The variable nature of solar and wind energy can destabilize this grid by rapidly altering frequencies.
HVDC lines alone increase stability by diverting these varying sources from the AC grid. However, the VSC aspect of the HVDC lines especially helps the HVAC grid stability by regulating voltage and frequency at connections between the two. Additionally, the HVDC lines have much lower energy losses than their HVAC counterparts, so can ensure maximum renewable energy produced is consumed. The VSC aspect is, however, more expensive than corresponding HVAC equipment, and this is only offset by reduced power losses beyond a distance of 650 km (overland) or 50 km (subsea). As such, the HVDC grid only serves to quickly and efficiently connect renewable production centers with major load centers a sufficient distance away from one another (the nodes), with the added benefit of increased stability; the existing HVAC grid will conduct the remainder of transmission.
Each node, then, has a certain area of influence, in which renewable-based electricity, having travelled through the HVDC grid into the node, can use HVAC architecture. These areas of influence will use energy curtailment and islanding techniques when appropriate so that destabilizing effects do not spread between them; this will minimize widespread power outages. The islands, then, are southern Patagonia (with the wind centers), central Patagonia (Comodoro Rivadavia), Comahue (Rio Colorado), the eastern Pampas (Buenos Aires), the central Pampas (Cordoba), the northwestern Valleys (San Miguel de Tucuman), the northeastern Littoral (Resistencia), the Atacama region (the solar centers), the Central Chilean Valley (Santiago de Chile), and the Southern Chilean Valley (Puerto Montt).
Economic Aspects
A variety of economic incentives will be applied to assist with the completion of these projects. Firstly, a carbon emissions trading scheme will be implemented. Major pollution-emitting facilities, for example, will participate in an auction for emission credits, and must limit their emissions in accordance with the amount of credits they have. Credits can be bought and sold between facilities.
Secondly, demand response initiatives will be carried out. Consumers' electricity rates will vary depending on the amount of energy and time of consumption. Consumers with higher amounts of energy consumption will face increasingly higher prices. This is to encourage energy efficiency and reduce overall load. Similarly, prices will be temporally adjusted according to demand, with rates being higher at peak demand times. This serves to encourage load shifting to off-peak times, reducing variabilities in demand.
Energy subsidies, traditionally reserved for fossil fuels, have all been shifted to this initiative, reducing the price of solar and wind energy even further to some of the cheapest in the world. While subsidies are reserved for any solar and wind power plants, they are increased for those adhering to "high efficiency design principles," like those outlined in the Green Energy Plan itself.
Additionally, to assist with overcoming prohibitively high initial capital costs, foreign investments, like from the DEU, will be encouraged through a hydrogen supply agreement, wherein debts incurred from such investments will be paid off with the hydrogen produced from the Green Energy Plan. This creates a stable hydrogen supply source that is clean and without any emissions, while also allowing San Martinia to bolster its energy matrix with renewables.
The State of the Energy Matrix (Post-Green Energy Plan)
At the completion of the Green Energy Plan, the solar parks of the northwest and the wind farms of the southeast will, together with FSR hydropower, be powering both nations. The complementarity of the three resources ensures relatively stable energy sources; droughts and dry periods that reduce hydropower production occur at times of the greatest solar irradiation. Similarly, solar power production, which inevitably decreases at night, will be offset by the higher wind speeds that appear with the moon.
Additionally, the continental scale of the supergrid that will result from this plan, encompassing both the FSR and San Martinia, ensures differing demand patterns also even one another out; hundreds of millions of people, living in climates as diverse as tropical rainforests, mountain valleys, temperate grasslands, and arid deserts, will have differing energy needs at differing times.