There is still some debate about how to measure renewables’ cost best. One common metric is the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE), which considers the upfront cost of building a renewable energy project and the ongoing operation and maintenance costs.
The LCOE for renewables is often lower than the LCOE for fossil fuels. However, some critics argue that the LCOE does not consider the full costs of renewables, such as the cost of building new transmission lines to connect renewable energy projects to the grid.
Other critics argue that the LCOE does not consider the environmental costs of fossil fuels, such as air pollution and climate change.
Which is the best way to measure the cost of renewables? The answer is that it depends on what you are trying to measure.
If you compare the upfront costs of different energy sources, then the LCOE is a useful metric. However, if you are trying to measure the full energy cost, including the environmental costs, more than the LCOE is needed.
In this case, it is important to consider a wider range of factors, such as the cost of transmission, the environmental costs, and the social costs of different energy sources.
