Renewable - Displacing Coal as a reliable energy source.


Renewable energy sources challenging assumptions

Texas wind and Colorado solar generate reliable supply at economic prices

Solar power has beat out natural gas to supply electricity to southern Colorado, SunEdison announced on Thursday.

The company says it has started construction on the largest solar energy facility east of the Rocky Mountains after bidding for a contract against all other energy sources. Power companies in the past have bought solar energy primarily to meet state-required renewable portfolio standards, not because they made the most sense economically.

SunEdison demonstrated that solar, under the right circumstances, can compete with what many people assume are much cheaper forms of energy. This is possible because solar panel costs are down 75 percent while efficiency is up 50 percent.

Critics who claim that renewable energy sources are too expensive need to question their assumption.

Texas wind power is also beginning to challenge critics who say renewable energy is not dependable. Now that the state has completed the necessary transmission lines, the state has more wind power from more parts of the state than ever before.

More sources of wind power means more wind and less intermittency.

Texas was wise to build those transmission lines to deliver the energy from sparsely populated West Texas to the big cities in the east. Germany hasn't done this, so they are struggling with too much renewable energy. Critics often say Germany is an example of green energy's failure, while it's actually a case of too much success.

Outside the Boardroom

In full disclosure, my wife works in the renewable energy sector. Her company was not involved in the SunEdison deal but has constructed wind farms in West Texas. But neither of those things changes the facts.

The electric power sector is at the beginning of a major revolution, with green sources of power just the tip of the iceberg. Distributed generation of electricity on residential rooftops and computerized conservation measures are disrupting how utilities make their money. We've begun to see generators with fossil fuel power plants begin to lobby against renewable sources to protect their income.

Critics, though, need to rethink some of their talking points. The industry is evolving, and the old excuses against renewable energy sources are fading.

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