Amerikaanse onderzoekers: ‘Werkelijke kosten’ het laagst voor stroom uit wind en gas
12 december 2016 – Als alle kosten worden meegenomen, dus ook die van effecten op milieu en publieke gezondheid, is stroom van wind en gas op de meeste plaatsen in de Verenigde Staten het goedkoopst, aldus onderzoekers van de Universiteit van Texas in Austin (UT Austin).
De onderzoekers van het Energy Institute van de UT Austin maakten een rekenmodel waarin ze alle kosten van elektriciteitsopwekking meenamen.
Uit een bericht van de UT Austin
‘(…) The study identifies and quantifies direct and indirect costs associated with both traditional and emergent power generation and delivery systems, including fuel, environmental and public health effects, infrastructure investments, integration of distributed energy resources and storage, and the interplay of energy efficiency and demand response with new generation. (…)’
Uit een persbericht van de UT Austin
‘(…) “These are complex, interrelated issues that cannot be adequately addressed from one perspective,” said Dr. Tom Edgar, director of the Energy Institute. “We assembled a cross-disciplinary team to provide a fuller understanding of these costs and their policy implications.”(…)
Researchers analyzed data for the most competitive sources of new electricity generation. Wind proved to be the lowest-cost option for a broad swath of the country, from the High Plains and Midwest and into Texas. Natural gas prevailed for much of the remainder of the U.S.; nuclear was found to be the lowest-cost option in 400 out of 3,110 counties nationwide. (…)’
Kolen is nooit de goedkoopste optie, aldus het Environmental Defense Fund op basis van de resultaten van de studie.
Uit een bericht van Environmental Defense Fund
‘(…) The analysis shows:
- Wind is the least-cost option in the most number of counties.
- Coal plants are never the least-cost option.
- Natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) plants are the least-cost option in counties where the wind isn’t as strong.
- Utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) plants are the least-cost option in counties where it’s particularly sunny and/or there is a lack of cooling water availability, which is needed for thermal generation like coal.
- When a county faces siting challenges that prevent other technologies from being built, residential solar PV plants (like rooftop solar) are the least-cost option. Put another way, rooftop solar is a viable option in every county; other power sources are not. (…)’
Bronnen
UT Austin, zonder datum: The Full Cost of Electricity (FCe-)
UT Austin, persbericht, 8 december 2016: Natural Gas and Wind are the Lowest-Cost Generation Technologies for Much of the U.S., New UT Austin Research Shows
Managementsamenvatting The Full Cost of Electricity (pdf)
FCe- Calculators, Data & Publications
Environmental Defense Fund, 9 december 2016: Groundbreaking Study Shows New Coal Plants Are Uneconomic In 97 Percent Of US Counties
Foto: US Department of Energy
