Originally published on Cost Of Solar. As I noted on Monday, the cost of solar power is insanely lower than you probably think. But, in that post, I focused on the average cost of solar panels, not specific all-in costs of going solar in your specific location. So, you might be wondering, how … [continued]
Originally published on the Lenz Blog. Eduard Porter makes the case for nuclear energy as a countermeasure to global warming in the New York Times. I learned of that article by reading the thorough debunking of the cost assumptions for nuclear by Charles Komaneff here. Thanks in turn to this tweet by Chris … [continued]
Originally published on Cost of Solar. The US Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and GTM Research recently released their latest quarterly report regarding the US solar energy market. There are a ton of interesting facts from the report, such as the solar panel costs fact above. Just a few of … [continued]
Solar energy as cheap as grid-supplied electricity could be just a few years away, at least for large commercial facilities with flat rooftops or some acreage to spare. Six years ago the Department of Energy awarded a $42 million grant to a company called Nanosolar for the development of … [continued]
Arizonans will see a reduction in their 2012 utility bills. Falling solar prices and growing use of solar power among households, business and industry, as well as 2011 renewable energy savings, prompted Arizona Public Service to propose, and the state Corporation Commission to approve a reduction in utility customers’ monthly renewable energy tariff. Small solar power installation businesses are concerned about the effect falling homeowner rebates will have on growth, however.
(Editor’s note: this is NOT even taking health, energy security, and environmental costs into account — not what this study is about — and it STILL finds that solar has reached grid parity in many places!) The real cost of implementing solar power is being deliberately hidden from the … [continued]
Content on this page requires a newer version of Adobe Flash Player. Update (December 2011): A recent study does a great job explaining how analysts systematically overestimate the costs of solar and also points out that solar has hit grid parity in some regions. Nonetheless, even this study doesn’t take … [continued]
The use of semiconductors, digital and solid state electronics is reshaping the architecture of solar power systems. Along with other innovations, this holds out the promise that solar power systems will soon be performing more efficiently, at higher levels and at further reduced costs. ArrayPower, a Silicon Valley start-up, launched its Sequenced Inverter – the first of its kind – at SPI in Dallas this week. Senior company executives spoke with Clean Technica about their technology and company while at the show.
A recent industry analysis by Lux Research projects the amount of solar power installed is to grow 15.5 percent per year, but revenues are to stay flat, until 2016. A report from Navigant Consulting discovered that the price of solar panels is down almost 20 percent as of August 2011. The information derived from these two reports show that the consumer is poised to benefit from the price reduction, while manufacturers can expect an almost flat profit margin for the next few years.
I wrote recently on the costs of wind power and how they compare to the costs of traditional forms of power like coal and nuclear when you take externalities and other subsidies into account. I was going to wait until I wrapped up our “comprehensive wind power page” to write on this topic for solar power, but a new report out from the Institute for Local Self Reliance pushed me into the topic a little early.
