Is Solar Cheaper Than Electricity

Solar power has become cheaper than grid electricity across china a development that could boost the prospects of industrial and commercial solar according to a new study.

Is solar cheaper than electricity.

Since then prices have fallen and today solar power is cheaper than coal. Many people ask when the cost of producing power from solar photovoltaic pv panels will be equal to or less than buying from the grid a point called grid parity that could accelerate solar. However that comparison doesn t even start to tell the whole story. The fact that our local service providers have made it easier for everyone even low income earners to buy airtime for as little as sh10 may make it look like airtime is cheaper than electricity.

Solar got cheap said jenny chase an analyst at bnef. That s why i prefer to talk about unsubsidized solar parity when the consumer can buy solar electricity priced without subsidies for less than power from their utility. Clearly solar power is more cost effective than regular or standard electricity. In two thirds of the world renewable sources of power are more affordable than carbon based electricity.

The cost of energy under our solar contract is very attractive at a generation cost of about 22 00 per mwh. When it was first introduced solar power was so expensive that it was a punchline in the energy business. Projects in every city analysed by the researchers could be built today without subsidy at lower prices than those supplied by the grid and around a fifth could also. In the past few years the industry surpassed this goal as solar and wind energy are now cheaper than fossil fuels in many areas.

But what about the cost of going solar. According to the world economic forum wef installing new solar panels is cheaper than a comparable investment in coal natural gas or other fossil fuel options. In the example i just gave the city of palo alto is buying subsidized electricity at 7 with an unsubsidized cost of 12 per kwh. The national renewable energy laboratory this week said that rooftop solar panels have the potential to generate nearly 40 percent of electricity in the u s.

This shift represents a substantial victory for green energy as it may offer the push the industry needs to. It s really that.