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Working out well then

As traffic lights went dark, South African citizens struggled to drive through busy junctions on their daily commute.

The country has been plunged into “stage six” load-shedding – up to six hours a day without electricity – in recent weeks as Eskom attempted to stave off a total collapse of the grid.

While South Africa’s problems might have been tied to corruption and bad management at the state-run power company,

Of course if we nationalised everything and put Burgon and Wes in charge this would never happen, would it?

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Boganboy
Boganboy
3 years ago

”clapped out’ coal-fired power plants, neglected maintenance, years of delays in the completion of new coal-fired power plants and high indebtedness of the state-owned power utility’

I suspect much the same’ll happen to Oz. Clapped out coal plants, neglected maintenance, expensive and unreliable windmills and solar panels, and huge debts to pay for all the Green nonsense.

We have seen the future, and it is shit.

Andrew Again
Andrew Again
3 years ago

When lights go out in some places the traffic moves faster as people take turns and the efficiency of the junction is increased as there is no gap between traffic flowing. I’ve seen it often. I’ve also seen the opposite though.

Arthur Teacake
Arthur Teacake
3 years ago

Every junction I’ve ever seen with failed lights has run more smoothly for it. Until the police turn up to direct traffic: then it’s a lot worse than with the lights.

Chris
Chris
3 years ago

Even when the robots are working, colour doesn’t matter, so in that respect at least, the end of apartheid has brought equality. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orsDl9kGl5c

Steve
Steve
3 years ago

In 1985 we thought we’d have flying cars by now, but instead:

warnings that blackouts of the developing world are making their way to Britain.

Can we organise a surprise lion party for Zac Goldsmith and his mates?

Now, industry is pushing Government officials to finalise plans for reducing demand on the electricity grid to provide certainty ahead of winter. It would be the first managed decline of the country’s energy system for decades

If there’s a single descended testicle left in the British body politic, this should should prove absolutely fatal to whoever’s in government this bleak midwinter. Tho the proles accepted their masks, restrictions and fake vaccines without much complaint, so we’ll see.

Yet the reality of life under energy rationing may be difficult for families in an advanced economy to swallow

The Net Zero plan was always, in its dark, shriveled, deep green little heart, about getting rid of that pesky “advanced economy” bit. Running hot water is white supremacy.

Nelson adds that while load-shedding is commonly described as blackouts, plans currently being put in place in Britain are very different.
“Blackouts we associate with sudden, accidental bad performance of the grid, but load-shedding is a planned, longer-term failure,” he says.
“Load-shedding means the grid is fine but there just isn’t enough power for everyone.
“It’s a slower, managed decline of the country.”

Lions.

Big, fucking lions with razor sharp teeth.

Meanwhile, turning to supplies abroad could prove increasingly tricky. The value of natural gas imports have soared in recent months as European countries compete to secure vital supplies to fill up their storage sites. The buying frenzy comes amid fears Russian president Vladimir Putin will completely ban gas deliveries to Europe through key pipelines.

When we decided to get into a proxy war with Russia, we probably shouldn’t have modelled our strategy on the Judean People’s Front Crack Suicide Squad. Putin must be laughing up his balalaika at how we’ve managed to massively increase Russia’s hydrocarbon profits, our sanctions are funding his war.


“People will relearn lots of things about daily rhythms of life before they had central heat or cheap electricity,” Nelson adds.
“It’s a hard way to live and, as a society, Britain hasn’t had to do this for a very long time. Tea will become one of the main sources of warm comfort because it doesn’t take that much energy to boil a bit of water for tea.
“Of course it’s too late for this decade, but key decisions can be made now for a bright, warm 2030s

I should probably stop commenting on this before I’m added to some kind of watchlist.

Jonathan
Jonathan
3 years ago

That White Supremacy in action again…

Whilst we’re chuckling though, this is the UK in 20 years.

Steve
Steve
3 years ago

this is the UK in 20 years.

I have bad news for you…

Jonathan
Jonathan
3 years ago

Ok, 5 years. And entirely deliberate…

Steve
Steve
3 years ago

*5 months

Bloke in North Dorset
Bloke in North Dorset
3 years ago

“ When lights go out in some places the traffic moves faster as people take turns and the efficiency of the junction is increased as there is no gap between traffic flowing. I’ve seen it often. I’ve also seen the opposite though.”

That happened a lot at the big roundabout between the M4 Heathrow junction and Stockley Park and at the M40 Handy Cross junction.

Ottokring
Ottokring
3 years ago

About 20 years ago, I was driving in Brussels. I had just visited our company’s office there and I was heading back to my brother’s in Holland. I was on the inner ring road, although I knew the Outer Ring very well, I’d never driven on this before. Needless to say I missed my (badly signposted ) turn to Leuven, but knew that “all I had to do” was get off the next junction and get onto the Outer Ring for a bit. Easy. ( I took the road to Namur ).

I sat in a queue of traffic, thinking that I was at lights or a roundabout something. Then as I approached, the full horror dawned on me. There was a Give Way line at the Ring Road. Somehow I had to magic myself across 3 lanes of motorway to the rather narrow central reservation and then manage to turn left onto the 3 lane motorway going the other way ( ie into the fast lane).

Decently, the Belgies on the Ring of course knew about this and slowed down for nutters trying to cross. Luckily I had a swift car.

It took a long time to clean the seats when I got to my bro’s.

CJ Nerd
CJ Nerd
3 years ago

The debacle is summarised in this chart.

https://twitter.com/statsjamie/status/1557111700066803712?s=20&t=ZIZd7HAWF9U08Ol3Zi2usw

We’ve got rid of the 67% cheap and reliable blue bit; we’ve made ourselves 40% reliant on the big yellow bit where Putin can indirectly yank our chain and impoverish us; and we’ve bet 38% of what we need on the dark blue free-but-unreliable-fuel bit.

Pcar
Pcar
3 years ago

@CJ
+1 Jamie does a good job

As does Lord Frost

Lord Frost goes cold on Net Zero

TCW Defending Freedom reports on David Frost’s paper for think-tank Policy Exchange, in which he says current evidence does not show we are facing a climate emergency and the Government needs to stop “hectoring” people to make sacrifices to save the planet.
https://www.conservativewoman.co.uk/lord-frost-goes-cold-on-net-zero/

Lord Frost paper
https://policyexchange.org.uk/publication/holy-illusions/

Pcar
Pcar
3 years ago

Whut? Is Brummer for real:

Biden’s $740bn tax and climate package gives the US President an energy boost and helps ease CPI fears
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/markets/article-11101837/

Boganboy
Boganboy
3 years ago

Damifino Pcar. I can only assume he expects to make lots and lots of money from the bill.

TomJ
TomJ
3 years ago

the dark blue free-but-unreliable-fuel bit.

Not free. Don’t fall for that rhetoric. Unreliables impose costs on managing the grid, as well as massive upfront and maintenance costs (one turbine indoors vs 10s of huge turbines at height spread across a wide area exposed to the elements; which will cost more to build and maintain?) even if there is no fuel cost.

Pcar
Pcar
3 years ago

as massive upfront and maintenance costs

Yep, like gearboxs meant to last 20 years failing after five or less years, blades pitted and delaminting, alternator combusting ang igniting large fire that fire brigade can only watch…

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