CleanTechnica » Solar Power Costs http://cleantechnica.com Clean Tech News & Views: Solar Energy News. Wind Energy News. EV News. & More. Tue, 30 Dec 2014 18:48:25 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.0.1 Least Financially Risky Electricity Projects: Solar & Wind http://cleantechnica.com/2014/12/20/solar-wind-power-financial-risk/ http://cleantechnica.com/2014/12/20/solar-wind-power-financial-risk/#comments Sun, 21 Dec 2014 00:38:35 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=76656 David Roberts of Grist recently dug into a couple of academic papers on the topic of cost overruns in the electricity sector. I had been saving the story for someone from our team to cover… but no one was picking it up, so I decided to do so a bit midnight (here in Europe) on this Saturday before Christmas. (You

Least Financially Risky Electricity Projects: Solar & Wind was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2014/12/20/solar-wind-power-financial-risk/feed/ 19 Link Between Electricity Prices & Renewable Energy Completely Warped In Forbes Article http://cleantechnica.com/2014/05/01/electricity-prices-renewable-energy-forbes/ http://cleantechnica.com/2014/05/01/electricity-prices-renewable-energy-forbes/#comments Thu, 01 May 2014 07:00:18 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=65673 Christine Harbin Hanson, the Federal Affairs Manager for Americans for Prosperity, recently wrote an article published on Forbes that shows that she is either very ill-informed on this matter or is simply looking to deceive people. I can only hope it’s the former. Her article incorrectly argues that Renewable Portfolio Standards cost citizens a great deal

Link Between Electricity Prices & Renewable Energy Completely Warped In Forbes Article was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2014/05/01/electricity-prices-renewable-energy-forbes/feed/ 27 Distributed Solar PV Benefits & Costs http://cleantechnica.com/2013/07/27/distirbuted-solar-pv-benefits-costs/ http://cleantechnica.com/2013/07/27/distirbuted-solar-pv-benefits-costs/#comments Sat, 27 Jul 2013 21:00:48 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=54427 This article first appeared on Solar Love. The Rocky Mountain Institute’s eLab has created a new report on solar power benefits and costs (distributed solar PV benefits and costs, to be specific). This is a critical effort, and a very useful report to help that effort along. Better valuation of distributed solar PV (DPV) is sorely

Distributed Solar PV Benefits & Costs was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2013/07/27/distirbuted-solar-pv-benefits-costs/feed/ 3 Renewable Energy Revolution: Declining Costs, Surging Capacity http://cleantechnica.com/2013/01/24/renewable-energy-revolution-declining-costs-surging-capacity/ http://cleantechnica.com/2013/01/24/renewable-energy-revolution-declining-costs-surging-capacity/#comments Thu, 24 Jan 2013 09:00:37 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=47500 Renewable power costs are declining sharply, with rapid deployment and fast rates of learning fueling ongoing capacity additions and cost reductions, according to a comprehensive new global report from the International Renewable Energy Agency

Renewable Energy Revolution: Declining Costs, Surging Capacity was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2013/01/24/renewable-energy-revolution-declining-costs-surging-capacity/feed/ 3 Ongoing Sharp Drop in Solar PV Cost Overlooked Amidst Trade Wars & Insolvencies http://cleantechnica.com/2012/10/16/ongoing-sharp-drops-in-solar-pv-cost-overlooked-amidst-price-trade-wars-insolvencies/ http://cleantechnica.com/2012/10/16/ongoing-sharp-drops-in-solar-pv-cost-overlooked-amidst-price-trade-wars-insolvencies/#comments Tue, 16 Oct 2012 16:04:32 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=44034 Solar PV manufacturing and overall costs continue to fall sharply, but that's being overlooked as the media focuses on solar trade wars, price wars, scandals and insolvencies

Ongoing Sharp Drop in Solar PV Cost Overlooked Amidst Trade Wars & Insolvencies was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2012/10/16/ongoing-sharp-drops-in-solar-pv-cost-overlooked-amidst-price-trade-wars-insolvencies/feed/ 11 Solar Prices Much More Competitive than Typically Thought, New Study Finds http://cleantechnica.com/2012/05/18/solar-prices-much-more-competitive-than-typically-thought-new-study-finds/ http://cleantechnica.com/2012/05/18/solar-prices-much-more-competitive-than-typically-thought-new-study-finds/#comments Fri, 18 May 2012 07:30:12 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=38201 A new study from Bloomberg New Energy Finance finds that solar power is a much more competitive power option than many think. Basically, the technology has changed so fast that many people just don’t realize it’s such a good option now. From Bloomberg: “Many decision-makers have yet to catch up with the improvements in the economics

Solar Prices Much More Competitive than Typically Thought, New Study Finds was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2012/05/18/solar-prices-much-more-competitive-than-typically-thought-new-study-finds/feed/ 1 Solar Grid Parity in North Carolina (New Study) http://cleantechnica.com/2012/03/20/solar-grid-parity-in-north-carolina-new-study/ http://cleantechnica.com/2012/03/20/solar-grid-parity-in-north-carolina-new-study/#comments Tue, 20 Mar 2012 14:02:11 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=36246 As John Farrell noted in an article in January, grid parity is a complicated matter (and doesn’t take into account important health costs, greenhouse gas emissions costs, and grid costs). But grid parity is rather important because it relates to what actual consumers directly pay for solar-powered electricity compared to conventionally powered electricity. Solar power has

Solar Grid Parity in North Carolina (New Study) was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2012/03/20/solar-grid-parity-in-north-carolina-new-study/feed/ 4 New Solar Cell Company Promises Solar Power for $0.50/Watt (Not Twin Creeks) http://cleantechnica.com/2012/03/19/new-solar-cell-manufacturing-process-promises-solar-power-for-0-50watt-another-one/ http://cleantechnica.com/2012/03/19/new-solar-cell-manufacturing-process-promises-solar-power-for-0-50watt-another-one/#comments Mon, 19 Mar 2012 12:32:17 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=36194   Last week you might’ve read about Twin Creeks Technologies and its super-thin solar cells. This company aims to cut the cost of solar cells in half. Ampulse Corporation, another upcoming company in the solar industry, has taken a similar (but still a bit different) approach. By making radical changes to the production process of solar

New Solar Cell Company Promises Solar Power for $0.50/Watt (Not Twin Creeks) was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2012/03/19/new-solar-cell-manufacturing-process-promises-solar-power-for-0-50watt-another-one/feed/ 13 Solar PV Reducing Price of Electricity in Germany http://cleantechnica.com/2012/02/09/solar-pv-reducing-price-of-electricity-in-germany/ http://cleantechnica.com/2012/02/09/solar-pv-reducing-price-of-electricity-in-germany/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 12:49:36 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=34741 Oh, the solar power haters* are going to love this one---a recent study by Germany's Institute for Future Energy Systems (IZES), conducted on behalf of of the German Solar Industry Association (BSW-Solar), has found that, on average, solar power has reduced the price of electricity 10% in Germany (on the EPEX exchange). It reduces prices up to 40% in the early afternoon, when electricity demand is peaking and electricity typically costs the most

Solar PV Reducing Price of Electricity in Germany was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2012/02/09/solar-pv-reducing-price-of-electricity-in-germany/feed/ 17 2012 Solar Expectations http://cleantechnica.com/2012/01/02/2012-solar-expectations/ http://cleantechnica.com/2012/01/02/2012-solar-expectations/#comments Mon, 02 Jan 2012 14:33:00 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=33502 Expectations cause a lot of problems — without expectations, we couldn’t be disappointed. However, it’s impractical not to have any expectations. So, the important thing is really just not to tie your happiness to your expectations too much. Work hard, be good, but also be flexible when it comes to the results. So, with that

2012 Solar Expectations was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2012/01/02/2012-solar-expectations/feed/ 5 Top 10 Clean Tech Stories of 2011 http://cleantechnica.com/2011/12/30/top-10-clean-tech-stories-of-2011/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/12/30/top-10-clean-tech-stories-of-2011/#comments Fri, 30 Dec 2011 15:18:39 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=33237   OK, I’m doing my top 10 list now. Following up on AWEA’s top 10 wind energy stories and SEIA’s top 10 solar energy stories, I decided I may as well give my own opinion on the top 10 clean energy stories and energy efficiency stories of 2011 (plus one bonus story). There will be

Top 10 Clean Tech Stories of 2011 was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/12/30/top-10-clean-tech-stories-of-2011/feed/ 1 Solar Power Less Expensive than Analysts Purport http://cleantechnica.com/2011/12/08/solar-power-less-expensive-than-analysts-purport/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/12/08/solar-power-less-expensive-than-analysts-purport/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 12:31:38 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=32773   (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 public according to a study

Solar Power Less Expensive than Analysts Purport was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/12/08/solar-power-less-expensive-than-analysts-purport/feed/ 15 Too Cheap for Our Own Good http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/30/too-cheap-for-our-own-good/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/30/too-cheap-for-our-own-good/#comments Wed, 30 Nov 2011 15:05:56 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=32536 I’ve been meaning to write this piece for a while — now seems to be the time. It’s more about American culture, or perhaps human nature, than anything else. It is most certainly an issue everywhere, but I don’t think there’s a country on earth where it’s a bigger problem than in the U.S. For

Too Cheap for Our Own Good was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/30/too-cheap-for-our-own-good/feed/ 12 About Solar Energy / Why Solar Energy http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/10/about-solar-energy-why-solar-energy/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/10/about-solar-energy-why-solar-energy/#comments Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:05:09 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=32048 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 into account some key factors

About Solar Energy / Why Solar Energy was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/10/about-solar-energy-why-solar-energy/feed/ 37 Cost of Solar Power in India May Drop 40% by 2015 http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/03/cost-of-solar-power-in-india-may-drop-40-by-2015/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/03/cost-of-solar-power-in-india-may-drop-40-by-2015/#comments Thu, 03 Nov 2011 21:34:27 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=31900 Lanco Solar CEO V. Saibaba has stated that he thinks solar power costs  in India could come down 40% by 2015, which would make solar cost-competitive with other energy sources even without subsidies correcting for the social costs of dirty energy. Due to the growing solar market for solar and technological development, the rupee per kilowatt

Cost of Solar Power in India May Drop 40% by 2015 was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/11/03/cost-of-solar-power-in-india-may-drop-40-by-2015/feed/ 2 New Generation Inverters to Drive Down Cost of Solar Power: Interview with Silicon Valley’s ArrayPower http://cleantechnica.com/2011/10/21/new-generation-inverters-to-drive-down-cost-of-solar-power-interview-with-silicon-valleys-array-power/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/10/21/new-generation-inverters-to-drive-down-cost-of-solar-power-interview-with-silicon-valleys-array-power/#comments Fri, 21 Oct 2011 13:52:22 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=31560 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

New Generation Inverters to Drive Down Cost of Solar Power: Interview with Silicon Valley’s ArrayPower was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/10/21/new-generation-inverters-to-drive-down-cost-of-solar-power-interview-with-silicon-valleys-array-power/feed/ 2 About Solar Power / Why Solar Power http://cleantechnica.com/2011/08/23/solar-power-intro-3-key-solar-power-points-top-solar-power-news/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/08/23/solar-power-intro-3-key-solar-power-points-top-solar-power-news/#comments Tue, 23 Aug 2011 13:38:30 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=29712 This isn't an intro on solar power technology. I'm sure you can find that over on Wikipedia. This is a quick intro on some of the top topics of concern to those who want to see us cruise into a bright future, not stumble and crash into some truly dark days

About Solar Power / Why Solar Power was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/08/23/solar-power-intro-3-key-solar-power-points-top-solar-power-news/feed/ 49 7 Solar Energy News Stories {Weekly Round-Up} http://cleantechnica.com/2011/07/12/7-solar-energy-news-stories/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/07/12/7-solar-energy-news-stories/#comments Wed, 13 Jul 2011 00:33:15 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=28858 Some solar energy news from around from the past week or so

7 Solar Energy News Stories {Weekly Round-Up} was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/07/12/7-solar-energy-news-stories/feed/ 0 True Value of Solar Power http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/26/true-value-of-solar-power/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/26/true-value-of-solar-power/#comments Sun, 26 Jun 2011 15:24:47 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=28567 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.

True Value of Solar Power was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/26/true-value-of-solar-power/feed/ 22 Are You Taking Advantage of the Sun on This Summer Solstice? http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/21/are-you-taking-advantage-of-the-sun-on-this-summer-solstice/ http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/21/are-you-taking-advantage-of-the-sun-on-this-summer-solstice/#comments Tue, 21 Jun 2011 11:49:43 +0000 http://cleantechnica.com/?p=28497 On this 2011 summer solstice (the longest day of the year) in the Northern Hemisphere, I thought I'd break out of my normal, obsessive news coverage and commentary tendency to step back and reflect a little more than usual. Here on CleanTechnica, that means reflecting on the clear benefits of solar energy and the clear question I think anyone not yet hooked up to solar could be asking themselves, reflecting on today

Are You Taking Advantage of the Sun on This Summer Solstice? was originally published on CleanTechnica.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2011/06/21/are-you-taking-advantage-of-the-sun-on-this-summer-solstice/feed/ 2