Ed Hoskins: “Weather-Dependent “Renewables” | Tom Nelson Pod #435
Ed Hoskins presents slides comparing renewables (onshore/offshore wind, solar PV, plus biomass and hydro) with gas, coal/lignite, and nuclear on productivity, EROEI, CO2 embedded in construction, land use, materials, build time, service life, and costs adjusted for capacity factors. He cites European capacity factors since 2010 (offshore ~32%, onshore ~20s, solar ~11%), a combined renewables average near 15% and declining since 2020, and a 2023 wind lull leaving large multi-day deficits. He argues storage to cover such gaps is infeasible, renewables require backup and expanded grids, wear out faster, and become far costlier once productivity is included; nuclear is most energy-productive. He criticizes Germany’s nuclear shutdown and questions CO2-driven policy. 00:00 Renewables Reality Check 02:17 Capacity Factors Since 2010 05:33 Dispatchability And Grid Backup 08:42 Wind Drought Case Study 11:43 Storage Costs And Scale 13:25 Energy Return On Investment 16:19 Germany Nuclear Shutdown 17:35 Embedded CO2 And Biomass 21:38 Land Use And Grid Sprawl 25:01 Build Times And Lifespans 29:16 Cost Comparisons With Productivity 41:00 2025 Installations And Conclusions 46:48 CO2 Warming Diminishing Returns 49:34 Q&A Grid Reliability And China 56:06 Wrap Up And Resources About Ed: https://edmhdotme.wpcomstaging.com/ https://edhoskins.substack.com/ CO2 concentration Ed Hoskins 2014: https://edmhdotme.wpcomstaging.com/co2-concentration-ed-hoskins-2014/ ========= Slides, summaries, references, and transcripts of my podcasts: https://tomn.substack.com/p/podcast-summaries My Linktree: https://linktr.ee/tomanelson1