Claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading

Source: The post claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading has been created, based on the article “Why solar and wind energy are still far from winning” published in “Live mints” on 26th April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 3- Economy-Infrastructure (renewable energy)

News: The article discusses why claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading. It highlights the hidden costs associated with their intermittent and the need for expensive backups like batteries, which significantly increase their overall costs.

For details information on the difficulty with renewables read Article 1, Article 2, Article 3

Why claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading?

Subsidies and Financial Support: Developed countries spend large amounts on subsidies to support the transition to renewable energy. For instance, governments around the world needed to spend $1.8 trillion on green transitions last year. These subsidies artificially lower the cost of solar and wind energy, masking their true economic impact.

Intermittency Costs: Solar and wind energy depend on weather conditions; thus, they are not always available. This necessitates expensive backup systems, such as batteries or fossil fuel plants, to provide power during downtimes. The real cost of solar, when factoring in reliability, could increase by 11 to 42 times, making it much more expensive than traditional power sources.

Storage Challenges: Adequate battery storage is essential for dealing with periods when solar and wind cannot generate power. For example, a study indicated that the U.S. would need enough storage to cover almost three months’ worth of electricity to fully rely on renewable sources, currently, it only has seven minutes of battery storage.

Environmental and Recycling Costs: The disposal of wind turbine blades and solar panels poses environmental risks and adds to the total cost. A town in Texas struggles with non-recyclable turbine blades, and in Africa, discarded solar panels leak harmful chemicals.

What should be done?

1. Focus on research and development to improve battery storage capabilities and efficiency of renewable energy technologies.
2. Need for advancing technologies that can complement or enhance renewable energy solutions.
3. Enhance recycling technologies for wind turbine blades and solar panels to mitigate environmental impacts and reduce waste.

Question for practice:

Examine the factors contributing to the misleading perception that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity.