Solar power costs up to 3x as much as fossil fuels, nuclear and wind power - NaturalNews.com
Saturday, October 24, 2020, 4 Years Ago via kodito1420 in Science
(Natural News) Solar power might sound like a great alternative to other types of energy on the surface, but when it comes to cost savings, the numbers might surprise you.
Last year, the average wholesale price in the U.S. for electricity generated using solar photovoltaic, or PV, technology was significantly greater than the average wholesale price for electricity from other sources.
According to the Power Operations Report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the weighted average wholesale price for electricity generated by solar PV was $83 per MW hour in 2019. This is more than double the price that was paid to producers of electricity that was generated by nuclear, fossil fuel or wind power. The wholesale electricity prices are the prices paid by electricity retailers like utilities to those who produce the electricity, such as the owners and operators of power plants.
This higher average price is being blamed in part on matters of timing and geography. Electricity prices change according to factors such as demand, the price of the fuels used to power plants, and the availability of the sources in wholesale markets. The prices that are being reported are calculated as the revenue received by generators in wholesale power markets, divided by the electricity generation of the technology; they do not include the cost of building power plants or generating the electricity.
In California, where a third of all U.S. solar PV capacity is found, the average wholesale electricity price of all technologies was double the national average of $36 per MW hour at $74.00 per MW hour. However, the weighted average wholesale price for solar PV in the state was $100 per MW hour, which is 20 percent greater than the nation's solar PV average.
Interestingly, the wholesale price that was paid for solar PV electricity in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas was lower than the average wholesale price of electricity from all sources in California. However, solar power's price was still higher than power from other sources in those states.
Last year, the average wholesale price in the U.S. for electricity generated using solar photovoltaic, or PV, technology was significantly greater than the average wholesale price for electricity from other sources.
According to the Power Operations Report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the weighted average wholesale price for electricity generated by solar PV was $83 per MW hour in 2019. This is more than double the price that was paid to producers of electricity that was generated by nuclear, fossil fuel or wind power. The wholesale electricity prices are the prices paid by electricity retailers like utilities to those who produce the electricity, such as the owners and operators of power plants.
This higher average price is being blamed in part on matters of timing and geography. Electricity prices change according to factors such as demand, the price of the fuels used to power plants, and the availability of the sources in wholesale markets. The prices that are being reported are calculated as the revenue received by generators in wholesale power markets, divided by the electricity generation of the technology; they do not include the cost of building power plants or generating the electricity.
In California, where a third of all U.S. solar PV capacity is found, the average wholesale electricity price of all technologies was double the national average of $36 per MW hour at $74.00 per MW hour. However, the weighted average wholesale price for solar PV in the state was $100 per MW hour, which is 20 percent greater than the nation's solar PV average.
Interestingly, the wholesale price that was paid for solar PV electricity in Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas was lower than the average wholesale price of electricity from all sources in California. However, solar power's price was still higher than power from other sources in those states.
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