Search waterheatertimer.org
/
all results
Search using 
|
Search waterheatertimer.org
/
all results
Search using
|
Cost to generate electricity by type of generator |
| Levelized cost of energy: Source
IEA
2021/ International energy agency Same/similar chart appears from Lazard estimates except with 5-10% lower number values for renewables and 5-10% higher values for conventional (nuclear, coal, gas etc) Shows cost per MWh of generation.  |
|
| David Svarrer responds to chart: David and his partner Thomas Hoeyer are actively involved in Solar Thermal Tower or solar concentrator where heat from sunlight is focused on a point where water is boiled into steam. The steam is used to rotate a steam turbine which spins an AC generator to produce electricity. Nuclear power comes out as USD 7,100 (minimum). The real price in 2021 figures is rather USD 9,000++ per kiloWatt, or, USD 9 per Watt. The cost of typical solar concentrated power is rather around SUD 4,600 per kiloWatt, and it is found many places at a cost nearing the one of Nuclear power. The cost of typical solar panels [rooftop], inclusive of MPPT controller, Battery and Inverter is more near to USD 2,000 per kiloWatt, and here one must bear in mind that one typically needs to [buy] batteries every 4 to 6 years at exorbitant cost too. The LCOE cost which you have on the IEA chart represents various more or less hidden costs, for instance discount rates arising from financing the systems too. LCOE is levelized cost of energy. You can say that the LCOE is designed to create a levelled playing field where one can compare costs, but it is very difficult, as Solar for instance depends on the place it is being put up, thereby in Chile one could count on up to 4,200 hours of net solar influx (in their desert, the one which see 2 millimeter of rainfall over one year), 3,600 in Sahara (Africa), and for instance between 1600 and 1900 hours of sun per year in Denmark. The power of the sun varies too. In Chile/Sahara the quality of the solar influx is up around 1,000 to 1,200 Watt per square meters. If one has Photo Voltaic cells, then these cannot make much use of the heat, so they only gobble up the light. In case one makes a solar concentrator based on heat, then it become more interesting instead of kiloWatt, to also glance a bit at the amount of kiloWatt-hours coming in per square meter. So, the LCOE was designed to level the playing field, but it sometimes appears beneficial for solar, sometimes beneficial for nuclear, coal etc. - while the people using the LCOE are far from always aware of the loopholes and down falls in the LCOE calculations. As so many other scientific models, there are preconditions for using it, and if one does not adhere to these, one can easily make even very wrong calculations. I therefore tend to take another approach - which is based on the reality on the ground. Instead of a generalized "one-model-fits-them-all", I have said, that I am fully happy to compare bananas and apples. It goes this way: I would instead look into the particular situation of a prospect buyer of a system. If the person can pay cash, why then get into advanced financing models where one have to calculate annuities? If, on the other hand, the person cannot pay cash, then the annuity model in the LCOE may not reflect the often very harsh interest rates payable for consumer-loans. So I'd rather set up the real figures and deal with those. The drawback of my way of doing it is, that unless one is very sharp, one can easily fall into the pit of ending up comparing bananas and apples - for example - a Nuclear power station appears very expensive per kiloWatt, however - it produces, largely, 8760 hours per year, where solar only produces compared to the environment it is installed in. So, if installed in Denmark in some of the "more wet" areas, the influx is 1600 hours per year of sun, and the power varies from 150 Watt per square meter to 900 Watt per square meter over the year. So now back to the IEA chart. Our solar concentrator system delivers at a rate of around USD 0.80 to 12 per MegaWatt-hour, or, USD 0.0008 to USD 0.012 per kiloWatt-hour - quite wide gap - depending on those many factors above, and even more factors. For instance - a locally produced solar concentrator (ours) in USA, and setup where sun is scarce, and setup maybe on a house, where the compound is circumferenced by tall trees - then even if you put it on the roof top, you are much more close to the USD 0.012 per kWh, than the USD 0.0008 per kWh. If you on the other hand are living in Arizona, and still produce the system locally in USA, then you may be more near USD 0.005 per kWh. If you are producing the system in Kenya (where I reside), and you set it up in Sahara (Northern Kenya which is very arid) - then you are closer to USD 0.0011 per kWh. If you produce it in Chile, and set it up in their desert, you would likely be hitting the USD 0.0008 per kWh. Australia is for instance by far one of the best places to put it - however - their production cost are prohibitive - so if one produced the system in China maybe, and set it up in the desert region of Australia, then you could also get close to USD 0.0008 per kWh. We are therefore, as you can see it - with pricing between USD 0.80 to 12 per MWh (to compare with the values in the IEA chart) - on the very very extremely low side of the price range. We build it in Stainless steel - so we expect longevity and durability beyond any product you know. |
|
Emmissions by type of power plant |
|
Reaching net ZERO? |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
| Batteries Storage of power via batteries has 2 measures: Energy capacity or how much power is stored (measured in MW or GW), and Power capacity or amount of power that can be dispatched or released to grid over time (measured in MWh or GWh). Watts are a measure of power. MWh or megawatthour is measure of wattage per hour. Compare MW rating of gas turbine and batteries. For example compare 50 MW gas turbine generator vs 50 MW battery installation. Both appear to offer same power, but the gas turbine will deliver 50 MW of continuous power, 24 hours a day. While a 50 MW battery installation can deliver 50 MW once and then must be re-charged.  |
|
 |
 |
Buy
from my affiliate links every time/ thanks: Amazon As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases Enter Amazon from any link on my site, fill cart with any item ... purchases pay small commission E-mail: geno03245w@gmail.com My response might end up in spam folder, check email folders Waterheatertimer on Twitter Message thru facebook |
