A Comparative Analysis of Energy Costs of Photovoltaic, Solar Thermal, and Wind Electricity Generation Technologies
Source abstract
Abstract
Global installed capacity of renewable energy technologies is growing rapidly. The ability of renewable technologies to enable a rapid transition to a low carbon energy system is highly dependent on the energy that must be “consumed” during their life-cycle. This paper presents the results of meta-analyses of life-cycle assessments (LCA) of energy costs of three renewable technologies: solar photovoltaic (PV), concentrating solar power (CSP), and wind. The paper presents these findings as energetic analogies with financial cost parameters for assessing energy technologies: overnight capital cost, operating costs and levelized cost of electricity (LCOE). The findings suggest that wind energy has the lowest energy costs, followed by CSP and then PV.
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Research context
OpenAlex topics: Photovoltaic Systems and Sustainability · Energy and Environment Impacts · Global Energy and Sustainability Research
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
Affiliations
Global Climate & Energy Project, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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