vboring

Renewable Energy: Approaching Grid Parity?

solar has only achieved grid parity in terms of cost in places with massive subsidies, only according to the most idealistic assumptions, and only in places with the worst power system management.

take away the subsidies and mandates, and add some reality and you end up with coal delivered for about $.06/kWh in most places and solar for about $.25/kWh.

this is why there are several new large scale coal plants being built in Nevada. to economically serve California's load without emitting CO2 in California.

Hawaii has huge access to geothermal that they have chosen not to develop so far because the volcano is considered sacred.

FSLR may make huge piles of cash, but most of it will be from idealism, subsidies, and mandates, not from a better energy product.