In California, there are 47 gigawatts of solar power installed atop rooftops, equaling out to over a quarter of the state’s energy. However, during the middle of sunny spring days, the energy produced exceeds demand, meaning prices for electricity will go negative, and solar power is thrown away.
Solar energy waste is most prevalent in the spring when there is less need for heating and cooling. Use is high in the morning and evening but drastically reduces during the day. Therefore, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory found that with a high demand of solar power on an electricity grid, the netload of renewable energy takes on a “U” shape. However, even when demand is low, solar panels continue to absorb energy that goes to waste. In 2022, the state wasted 2.4 million megawatt-hours of electricity, and
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