{"id":535,"date":"2025-12-21T18:56:33","date_gmt":"2025-12-21T17:56:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/?p=535"},"modified":"2026-08-29T16:52:58","modified_gmt":"2026-08-29T14:52:58","slug":"the-duck-curve-curtailment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/en\/the-duck-curve-curtailment\/","title":{"rendered":"What is the duck curve and what is curtailment in the power system?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Conceptual<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Article reviewed by Jes\u00fas Andrade<\/a>, an electronics engineer with an MBA from ESIC. He combines 20 years\u2019 experience developing emergency lighting and risk-prevention devices with a strong background in business management. Andrade is currently CTO at SVE Worldwide, a company specialising in industrial risk-prevention solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The duck curve and curtailment: two effects of renewable integration<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The duck curve and curtailment in the power system are two concepts that help explain how renewable energy is being integrated into the traditional electricity grid. Let\u2019s go through them step by step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Renewable systems as an alternative<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The duck curve: mismatch between demand and solar generation <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Curtailment: when there is too much renewable energy on the grid<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Solutions to the duck curve and curtailment: smart grids and energy storage<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Renewable systems as an alternative<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The growing \u2014and understandable\u2014 concern about the harmful environmental effects of conventional power plants has led, for several years now, to greater renewable generation capacity and a stronger presence of these sources in the energy mix of many countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What does this mean for us as consumers? In principle, it should not affect us directly, but we should also understand that a greater presence of renewable energy in our power system<\/a> requires some adaptation and the acceptance of certain risks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two interesting concepts often come up when we talk about the integration of renewable energy into electricity grids: the duck curve and curtailment. Let\u2019s see what they mean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

What is the duck curve?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The duck curve is the name given to the chart that shows the mismatch between solar photovoltaic generation and electricity demand from consumers throughout the day. The duck curve was first popularised by the California Independent System Operator (CAISO)<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why does the duck curve happen?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The highest peaks in electricity demand <\/a>usually occur late in the day, when there is no sunlight and solar power can no longer help us. On the other hand, solar generation reaches its highest output during the day \u2014as long as there are no clouds on the horizon\u2014 when demand tends to fall considerably.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This mismatch can be seen in the following chart, which shows the demand not covered by solar photovoltaic generation. Its shape resembles a duck, which is why we call it \u201cthe duck curve\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Chart<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What does this mean? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It means that when we most need solar energy to switch on the lights or cook dinner, we cannot rely on it and need to turn to other energy sources, mainly conventional ones. This can have an environmental impact if there is not enough hydropower or other dispatchable renewable energy available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

What is curtailment?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

When we talk about the duck curve, we are referring to the hours of demand that solar generation cannot cover. Curtailment <\/strong>\u2014the reduction or spilling of renewable energy\u2014 refers to exactly the opposite: an excess of renewable production that the grid is unable to manage and that can even lead to very low or near-zero electricity prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In these cases, the grid operator has to contact the generation plant and ask it to reduce or stop production, because there is not enough demand to use all that energy or the grid does not have enough capacity to absorb it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the end, that available energy, in the form of wind or sunlight, is not used because there is nowhere to consume it, store it or transport it efficiently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Smart Grids<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Possible solutions to reduce curtailment and flatten the duck curve include <\/strong>improving grid capacity<\/a>, so that the system can manage the balance between supply and demand more efficiently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In recent years, the term smart grids has become increasingly common. It refers to intelligent electricity networks that use digital technologies to predict and manage variations between supply and demand in a more efficient and sustainable way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flexibility through energy storage<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another solution is to make power systems more flexible. How can this be achieved?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At grid level, some countries are already implementing \u2014or have already implemented\u2014 systems known as FESS, or Flywheel Energy Storage Systems. These are large flywheels, or inertia-based storage systems, that help stabilise the grid by maintaining the required frequency: 50 Hz in Europe and 60 Hz in the Americas. Essentially, they replicate some of the functions of traditional generation systems, while adapting better to the variability of renewable energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At domestic, business and industrial level, lithium iron phosphate batteries \u2014LiFePO4\u2014 are emerging as an interesting alternative for storing energy when it is available and using it when we need it. A very clear example would be storing solar energy produced during the day so that it can be used at night, just when demand rises the most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

At LILAK, we prefer to focus on solutions rather than problems, although understanding the problems is essential. That is why we believe that giving consumers small-scale energy storage systems, in the form of backup lighting, can be a small but meaningful contribution to keeping power systems safe and sustainable. It can also become a useful resource in the event of any grid problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That brings us to the end of this new post. We hope you are enjoying it as much as we are. And if you experience a power outage in the next few days \u2014although we certainly hope you do not\u2014 this information may help you understand what could be happening.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The duck curve and renewable curtailment: grid impact and how smart grids and energy storage can help.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":938,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-535","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sin-categoria"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/535","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=535"}],"version-history":[{"count":22,"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/535\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1311,"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/535\/revisions\/1311"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=535"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=535"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lilaklights.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=535"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}