THE NEW ENERGY DEAL IS GETTING BETTER

Report: Utility-Scale Renewables Keep Getting Cheaper

Sept. 19, 2014 (Up Front via Renew Grid)

"Utility-scale wind and solar power are increasingly cost-competitive with traditional energy sources such as coal and nuclear, even without subsidies, according to [Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis - Version 8.0, which] also highlights the ongoing need for diverse power generation technologies, especially in regions with limited renewables resources…Land-based wind generation costs continue to decline dramatically…[T]he levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of leading wind technologies has fallen by more than 15% in the past year and nearly 60% in the last five years…[O]ffshore wind generation is currently at least twice as expensive as land-based wind and, therefore, not cost-competitive without subsidies…The costs of generating electricity from all forms of utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) technology also continue to decline dramatically…[T]he LCOE of leading PV technologies has fallen by nearly 20% in the past year and nearly 80% in the last five years…[I]n many parts of the world, utility-scale solar PV continues to increase its cost advantage over conventional generation as a source of peak energy, without any subsidies…

“…[W]ithout subsidies, residential-scale solar PV (rooftop solar panels) remains considerably more expensive than utility-scale solar PV, raising the question of whether subsidies are distorting the long-term energy planning process…[B]attery storage technologies, a potential complement to intermittent energy resources such as wind or solar, continue to be very expensive and not cost-competitive without subsidies…Large-scale conventional generation projects (such as IGCC or nuclear) continue to face a number of challenges, including high absolute costs…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet