We recently got the following reader comment on a post of Andrew’s on electric vehicles, the smart grid, and residential solar power. It’s a great one, so I thought I’d highlight it further with a quick repost here. Check it out:
May I please emphasize this?
“A small, 1.2-kilowatt solar system priced at around $4,000 will cover charging costs for an electric vehicle for up to 40 years.”
For $4,000 you can buy your ‘gas’ for the next 40 years.
For the next forty years you will be producing the power for your EV for $8.33 a month. Those are fixed dollars, not dollars that will rise with inflation, the $8.33 per month is locked in.
The $185 per month that ICEV owners will be paying for gas? In forty years, based on past inflation, will cost you $1,027.
Let’s use historical inflation rates to look forward to forty years from now…
Price for gas now = $185.
Price for electricity now = $8.33.
Price for gas forty years from now $1,027.
Price for electricity forty years from now $8.33.
Forty years from now $8.33 will have the buying power of $1.44 in today’s dollars. For less than the price of a latte, you charge your EV for a month.
On an annual basis, $12,324 for gas, $100 for electricity.
What’s not to love about that?
(Yes, curmudgeons, there may be some inverter repair necessary along the way, and a tree might need to be trimmed back. Thank you in advance for grousing.)
Image Credit: SunPower
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