This is a separate website that discusses prices and costs. Last entry 2019.
Advocates for clean energy resources have long talked about the social, environmental, and carbon benefits of moving away from fossil fuels. They have worked to convince utilities, regulators, legislators, and other decision makers that such benefits outweigh any additional costs of deploying clean generation.
Starting in the early 2000’s, policies such as Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS), emission reduction goals, and carbon standards have been adopted by states to jumpstart the entry of more renewables into markets and build knowledge and experience of utilities. These policies have advanced the development and deployment of wind, solar, and storage technologies, leading to significant price reductions for clean energy.
As a result, projects for wind, solar – with and without battery storage, are being procured for record low prices, outperforming bids from coal and gas generators. For example, NextEra Energy set a new low for solar + battery storage in its bid to Tucson Electric Power in May 2017, offering a 100 megawatt (MW) solar array and a 30 MW storage facility at $.045 per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Months later, Excel Energy attracted unprecedented low prices for wind and solar facilities paired with storage. Since then, utilities in several other Western states including Arizona, Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, and Utah have also received similarly low-priced bids for dozens of wind, solar, and/or storage projects.
Click here – Prices by State – for the list of projects and publicly released prices.
Articles and resources:
There is an increasing number of articles and studies that demonstrate, explain and substantiate the trend of lower prices for renewable energy resources. On this page, we have links to several of these articles. We will add resources as they become available. Some articles are behind paywalls.
Record Low Prices for Clean Energy Resources: Recent Reference Cases Renewables ‘have won the race’ against coal and are starting to beat natural gas Think Progress, March 29, 2019 Majority of coal plants are uneconomic to nearby wind, solar, report finds Utility Dive, March 25, 2019 New PPA In Arizona Locks in Lowest Solar Prices In US as Demise Of Navajo Station Looms Clean Technica, June 11, 2018 Western Electric Co-ops Increasingly Able to Deliver Savings by Integrating Renewable Energy Rocky Mountain Institute, August 23, 2018 The Shifting Winds of Near-Term Renewable Energy Demand Drivers Utility Dive, April 17, 2018 Energy Costs: Renewables Close in on Fossil Fuels, Challenging on Price USA Today, April 4, 2018 Renewable Energy will be Consistently Cheaper than Fossil Fuels by 2020, Report Says Forbes Magazine, January 13, 2018 Xcel Attracts ‘Unprecedented’ Low Prices for Solar and Wind Paired with Storage GreenTech Media, Jan 8, 2018 Lazard’s 2017 Forecast for Levelized Energy Costs: Actual 2018 Bids Dip Well Below Forecasts Lazard 11th Annual Levelized Cost of Energy Forecast, November 2, 2017 Tucson Electric gets Solar + Storage for 4.5 cents/kWh? Utility Dive, May 30, 2017