maillemaker wrote:
Renewable power is not getting cheaper and in fact when added to the traditional power grid of nuclear and natural gas, all it does is drive up the cost to the consumer.
This is false.
Globally, onshore wind schemes are now costing an average of $0.06 per kilowatt hour (kWh), although some schemes are coming in at $0.04 per KwH, while the cost of solar PV is down to $0.10 per KwH. In comparison, the cost of electricity generation based on fossil fuels typically falls in a range of $0.05 to $0.17 per KwH.
The figures are contained in IRENA's Renewable Power Generation Costs in 2017 report, which was released on January 13, the first day of the 8th IRENA Assembly in Abu Dhabi, the capital city of the UAE. The report predicts that solar costs will fall even further in the next few years, with a further halving of typical costs by 2020. That means onshore wind and solar PV projects could be consistently delivering electricity for as little as $0.03 per kWh within two years.
Adnan Amin, director-general of IRENA, says a significant shift is underway in the energy sector. “These cost declines across technologies are unprecendented and representative of the degree to which renewable energy is disrupting the global energy system,” he said.
Again, I applaud your optimism and additional resolve to find so many articles to support your position. I, on the other hand will defer to my original position based on real life experience (you know paying bills and such) over the last 5 years that renewable power is not getting cheaper and in fact when added to the traditional power grid of nuclear and natural gas it drives up the cost to the consumer. So much so that here in Ontario the cost of electricity increased by over 50%! As a result of this boondoggle we just threw that govt out of office.
Anyhow, thanks for this however I do not wish to debate this any further and will leave it here. I appreciate that everyone has their own take on this issue. Just glad to hear that you are willing to pay extra to charge your car.
