What is the cheapest source of energy? What are important factors to consider?
Currently Coal is the cheapest form of energy in US. But that has to be properly quantified, because it is not the cost of fuel alone, but if we start taking all the consequences into account something else will come. So the cost analysis need to undergo a change taking all the environmental costs into account.
From solar-powered watches and cars that run on salt water to naturally derived cleaning sprays and curbside recycling, lots of people are going green. Nevertheless, when it comes to high-ticket items, like the cars we drive and how we power our homes, the steep costs of alternative energy sometimes keep us from making the greenest choices.
Scientists, researchers and advocates for green technologies are working hard to bring down these costs. Solar power has been one of the most expensive sources of alternative energy, but recent research using magnetic fields to collect solar energy without the need for expensive photovoltaic cells could dramatically reduce its costs in the future. Wind farms are another promising renewable energy resource; however, collecting and conveying the power of the wind presents an expensive obstacle. Geothermal power (energy from the heat found inside the earth's crust) seems like the perfect way to cheap, infinitely renewable power -- except for the dangerous earthquakes that might occur as a result of collecting the Earth's steam.
Technologies for harvesting and storing alternative energy are all evolving so quickly that it's difficult to say which new alternative energy source is the cheapest. Today's promising technology may be surpassed by something even greener tomorrow. Furthermore, regional characteristics have a huge effect on the cost of alternative energies, making resources like solar power cheaper in the sun-drenched desert than it is in the cloudy Northwest. Also, interesting new sources of energy, including underwater vibration and sewer biogas, may one day prove to be cheap sources of green energy. However, these haven't been tested or implemented widely enough to be cost-competitive. Still other alternative energies like biodiesel aren't strictly renewable, but the fact that we can use them in existing vehicle fleets makes them a viable, if not exactly dirt cheap, alternative energy option in the short term.
Currently Coal is the cheapest form of energy in US. But that has to be properly quantified, because it is not the cost of fuel alone, but if we start taking all the consequences into account something else will come. So the cost analysis need to undergo a change taking all the environmental costs into account.
Well i think solar energy and wind energy could have been cheapest in our country if you neglect the upfront cost of installation. But unfortunately renewable energy sources are not well understood here.
@Nageswara and @Amir
Thanks. I agree the cost should include all costs (installation, repair, failure...) and should include environmental costs in the life span of the project.
@Behrouz, in Serbia the cheapest source is lignite coal that is used in the most of fossil fuel power plants! Europe complains about, since Serbia wants to become member of EU!
We have large lignite's reserve for next period of 50 years! New power plants are build based on lignite coal!
http://bankwatch.org/news-media/blog/european-parliament-criticises-serbias-lack-progress-renewables
The solar energy is the cheapest in Jordan and in the region. Now, ASU and many other universities are utilizing Renewable Energy to create a sustainable energy future.
The problem with solar energy is that though its fuel cost is zero in countries where it is abundantly available such as in India and Jordan, the large upfront cost associated with it for installation. It will become economical when the other fuel costs go higher, or we develop economical methods of producing PV solar panels. Another problem to think of is that it is not continuously available since it relies on the sun, the weather, and the time of the day. So some kind of energy storage needs to be planned along with it. That will increase its cost. If the government allows you to sell produced energy to be fed into the grid like in Germany, then the storage part could be avoided. Environmentally it is the best.
currently in my country hydal power generation is cheapest source of energy generation.
There are many other sources like thermal, coal etc. but they are not comparable with hydal power generation because they are running at very low production efficiency.
There is no much focus on renewables like solar and wind!!
Hello Behrouz,
Solar & wind energy,however we need effective mechanism in place to harness these,for overall benefit to the common people.
The Earth receives 174 petawatts (PW) of incoming solar radiation (insolation) at the upper atmosphere. Approximately 30% is reflected back to space while the rest is absorbed by clouds, oceans and land masses. The spectrum of solar light at the Earth's surface is mostly spread across the visible and near-infrared ranges with a small part in the near-ultraviolet.
Earth's land surface, oceans and atmosphere absorb solar radiation, and this raises their temperature. Warm air containing evaporated water from the oceans rises, causing atmospheric circulation or convection. When the air reaches a high altitude, where the temperature is low, water vapor condenses into clouds, which rain onto the Earth's surface, completing the water cycle. The latent heat of water condensation amplifies convection, producing atmospheric phenomena such as wind, cyclones and anti-cyclones.Sunlight absorbed by the oceans and land masses keeps the surface at an average temperature of 14 °C. By photosynthesis green plants convert solar energy into chemical energy, which produces food, wood and the biomass from which fossil fuels are derived.
Hi,
So far many of you have argued that solar energy is cheapest in your country. How? I think it is still about ten times more expensive than fossil fuels! I know it it is abundant source of energy in most of middle-east countries but how about its conversion costs. it is still very costly
@Mahmoud, that is good point on conversion costs! I share the opinion that it is very costly yet!
Dear Prof. Omid, thank you for the comment.
I agree that conversion cost are still high in comparison the other traditional source.
Among various solar energy technologies, solar water heating systems are more affordable now and as you know the use of these systems has started in homes in spite of high initial cost (installation).
These systems has been widely used in Australia, Austria, China, Cyprus, Greece, India, Israel, Japan, Spain and Turkey. China is leading the field.
ِDear Dr. Ahmadi-Nedushan :About solar water heating (SWH) systems you mentioned above we made some simulation already. Please see {1}.
In [1] we investigated the potential of SWH systems for heating commercial greenhouse. The project viability analysis is performed using RETScreen software through heating energy production analysis, financial analysis, and GHG emission analysis. The results of energy production analysis indicated that from 22% in January (worst case) up to 71% in November or March (at best condition) of energy demands can be supplied by introducing SWH systems. While there is some gain in energy savings and GHG emission reduction, the negative amount of Net Present Value (NPV) demonstrate why solar power is not being implemented on a wide scale in Iran: the costs are still too high. Hence, the high initial cost of the SWH system seems a barrier against the deployment of such systems in the studied region. We concluded that this system is not economically viable without carbon trading option taken into account.
[1] Ramedani, Z., M. Omid and A.R. Keyhani (2012), Feasibility and project viability analyses for installing SWH systems in greenhouses of Alborz province of Iran using RESTScreen. Electronic Journal of Environmental, Agricultural and Food Chemistry 11 (5): 565-577.
Paper is available on my Page:
Article Feasibility and project viability analyses for installing SW...
Dear Prof. Omid, Thank you for the info and your interesting article on the subject .
It would be nice is someone can provide a table which compares the costs for different sources of energy.
Here is an article with cost comparison of different sources of energy!
http://www.renewable-energysources.com/
Dear Ljubomir, Thanks for the table.
Acsording to the table, Solar PV is higher than Geothermal, Hydro and coal in US.
Perhaps a more appropriate question would be "what is the most abundant energy resource." The "cheaper resource" is something that can depend on several factors.
In Brazil, the most abundant energy is hydropower.
The cheapest is probably the natural gas that comes from our neighbor, Bolivia, but it would be cheaper under a financial point of view.
What is the cheapest according to an economic standpoint?
P.S. Obviously I want to include more issues to be discussed.
According to attached report, for every megawatt hour (MW/h) of electricity generated, onshore wind costs roughly €105 (£83) per MW/h, compared to gas and coal which can cost up to around €164 and €233 per MW/h, respectively.
Nuclear power, offshore wind and solar energy are all comparably inexpensive generators, at roughly €125 per MW/h.
Wind power is cheapest energy, EU analysis finds
Onshore windfarms far cheaper than coal and gas when health impacts are factored in, report shows ( see the link for more info).
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/13/wind-power-is-cheapest-energy-unpublished-eu-analysis-finds
I think we need to take a holistic view. Renewable, available land, actual costs of harnessing and conversions, consequences for the human kind, etc. Another good thread with similar discussion is here.
https://www.researchgate.net/post/What_is_the_current_scope_of_bioenergy_or_biofuels?cp=re65_x_p2&ch=reg&loginT=Pk5jXOEDKpfHL3aPYtLHMpYrklSIsUjl7dy-2jNBEiM%2A&pli=1#view=538499b1d3df3e8f7c8b461c
A good question. It has reminded my papers " What does Spatial Data Infrastructure mean to Pakistan and Natural Resources-Neglected Pillars of Pakistan’s Economy.
Of course, coal is the cheapest source of energy in Pakistan. Sun is considered as the cheapest source globally but technology to make use of it, is still not the cheapest one.
solar and water energy, as well as air energy can be also the one if utilized in the right way,
I think it the energy generated from wood is the cheapest in the my country.
Though coal could be cheaper but it has highest greenhouse gas emissions (CO2)compared to renewable energy. Hydro and wind power have lower GHG emissions (CO2). We have to consider pollution costs as well when considering which source of the energy is the cheapest!
Under current economic conditions coal is the cheapest energy source, at country level. However, biomass can be even cheaper (for example, for a tribe living in Amazonia - they pay nothing for it, just an effort to cut trees).
Under proper carbon taxes natural gas may win over coal in certain regions (its price is very heterogeneous across space, and it produces less carbon emissions).
Hydro power has certainly a lower variable cost, but if we sum fixed cost to build it and environmental damage (like lost land for agriculture), it is not always cheaper than coal. However, it produces zero emissions, and will be more a winner in future. The problem is that we have quite limited capacity and its expansion has its limit.
Wind and especially solar energy are more expensive than hydro and coal, due to high fixed cost and necessity to balance supply (that is random).
"Solar Power To Become Cheapest Source of Energy..."
By 2025, the report says, the cost of producing power in central and southern Europe will have declined to between 4 and 6 cents per kilowatt hour, and by 2050 to as low as 2 to 4 cents, making it the cheapest source of energy in many parts of the world...
http://www.forbes.com/sites/federicoguerrini/2015/03/31/solar-power-to-become-cheapest-source-of-energy-in-many-regions-by-2025-german-experts-say/#124622d94615
In this part of Canada (Manitoba) hydro electric is the cheapest right now. Geothermal appears to be very competitive, but needs to be evaluated further.
Eventually, I think solar power will prevail worldwide. If it gets more popular, it would be cheaper to install than now. The power from the sun is always available (except in thick clouds), so it makes sense to use it.
Dear Behrouz:
In my country, Argentina, there is nowadays a serious shortage of energy. Electricity, oil, and gas, which not long ago we were able to export, are now scarce due to recent bad policies and lack of investment. Electricity is mainly based on fuel, followed by hydroelectric and nuclear production. Now there are plans to expand alternative energy sources. In particular, wind power seems to be the cheapest (and less polluting) alternative, since wind is abundant in our southern region of Patagonia.
It is always Solar Energy. It may involve initial expenditure but loans are available at low interest rates. Once, the initial expenditure is paid up, energy is available in a residential or Industrial unit free of Cost!!!
Education is needed to promote energy savings. “People need to know how their decisions and actions will affect the energy use and cost...” - John Lord
http://www.plantservices.com/articles/2016/what-works-getting-schooled-on-energy-savings/?show=all
Hello Mr Nedushan.
You know about Iran and this is not necessary for us talk about it. I think in Iran Sunlight energy is cheapest but we dont have any plan for it. After sunlight I think Gas energy is cheapest in Iran.
Energy conservation is the cheapest form of energy generation.
Solar and onshore wind power energy cheapest energy sources.
http://legendpower.com/news-events/the-worlds-cheapest-source-of-energy/
https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Wind-Solar-Are-Now-The-Cheapest-Sources-Of-Power-Generation.html
In my country and in the world, I would say solar energy is the cheapest and clean source of energy. Cheapest source of energy depends from country to country and refers to the availability of raw material for producing energy.
In my country (India) SOLAR and Wind wheel energy is cheapest as compared other energy. Important factors to consider for grabbing energy i.e. wheather conditions and initial investment for setup.
In my country ( Iraq), the cheapest source of energy is oil derivatives and cheaper than oil is the gas associated with the oil, but it is still burning in the atmosphere so far without plans to take advantage of it
solar energy for equatorial region
wind energy in the coastal nations
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