Nov 16 2010
An analytical study by A.T. Kearney, a management consultant firm, which was commissioned by Phoenix Solar A.G, a solar array developer, revealed that electricity generated from solar panels in Germany would cost the same as the electricity from coal plants or new gas within a period of five to eight years.
It is expected that it would even be much cheaper than fossil fuel electricity by 2020. Production expenses for solar power generation may be as low as 12.6 euro cents or $0.18 for one kilowatt-hour by the year 2020, while fossil fuel electricity would cost 15.6 cents, the current costs for solar generated electricity would be 23.9 cents per kilowatt hour.
According to Andreas Haenel, Phoenix Solar’s CEO, the reduction in costs is contingent on the sustained growth in demand for panels. Haenel observed in a briefing in Berlin that the study further disclosed that unfair comparisons with coal and nuclear power systems gave a false picture, showing solar panels as more expensive. If compared to the newly installed natural gas or coal-fired plants, a more realistic assessment can be obtained. Alluding to the study again, he remarked that the current year was the first time when the economic benefits of the solar panels, such as lower CO2 emissions and tax revenues, were more when compared to the expenses.
Source: http://www.phoenixsolar.com/