The New Energy Deal Get Even Better

Renewable Energy Costs Take Another Tumble, Making Fossil Fuels Look More Expensive Than Ever

Dominic Dudley, May 29, 2019 (Forbes)

“The cost of renewable energy has tumbled even further over the past year, to the point where almost every source of green energy can now compete on cost with oil, coal and gas-fired power plants…Hydroelectric power is the cheapest source of renewable energy, at an average of $0.05 per kilowatt hour (kWh), but the average cost of developing new power plants based on onshore wind, solar photovoltaic (PV), biomass or geothermal energy is now usually below $0.10/kWh. Not far behind that is offshore wind, which costs close to $0.12/kWh…[These global averages] can vary hugely…However, all these fuel types are now able to compete with the cost of developing new power plants based on fossil fuels such as oil and gas, which typically range from $0.05/kWh to over $0.15/kWh [according to a new International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) report]…

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…The most attractive renewable energy sources, from a cost perspective, are onshore wind [at $0.03-0.04/kWh] and solar PV [at $0.03/kWh] in places with good natural resources and the right regulatory and institutional frameworks…Even the most expensive renewable energy technology, concentrated solar power (CSP) [$0.10/kWh to $0.27/kWh, with an average price of around $0.18/kWh], is competitive against fossil fuels in some circumstances…The ability of renewable energy to compete effectively against the older fossil fuel technologies is coming as a result of consistent falls in the cost of new plants. Last year alone, the global weighted-average cost of electricity from bioenergy fell by 14%, while solar PV and onshore wind costs dropped by 13% and hydropower fell by 11%. The sharpest fall came in the cost of CSP plants, which dropped by 26%. The cost of geothermal and offshore wind appeared to plateau though, with costs edging down by just 1%...” click here for more

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