EU warned about ‘lost decade’ for renewables as costs continue to fall
The cost of generating electricity from renewable energies is set to reach new lows worldwide, according to projections by the International Renewable Energy Association (IRENA), published on Saturday (13 January).
But much of the expected growth in solar and wind power generation could happen outside of Europe, because of stalling policies there, EU lawmakers and industry representatives have warned.
The cost of generating power from onshore wind has fallen by around a quarter since 2010, with solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity costs falling by 73% in that time, according to a new cost analysis from IRENA.
By 2019, the best onshore wind and solar PV projects will be delivering electricity for an equivalent of $3 cents/kWh or less, down from a current average of $6-10 cents respectively, IRENA said. Fossil fuel power generation currently stands at $5-17 cents/kWh, making renewable energies more competitive than ever.
“Turning to renewables for new power generation is not simply an environmentally conscious decision, it is now – overwhelmingly – a smart economic one,” said Adnan Z. Amin, the Director-General of IRENA.
“These cost declines across technologies are unprecedented and representative of the degree to which renewable energy is disrupting the global energy system,” he said.
