The cost of renewable energy has been a major cause of concern among consumers today. Fossil fuels are certain to decline in addition to their damaging effects on the earth. Therefore, any earth-loving person would not mind the cost of renewable energy. Moreover, most renewable energy sources require only a one-time installation cost and little maintenance afterwards. After this initial cost, renewable energy can be replenished naturally and completely free. Typically, the cost of renewable energy depends on the size and type of system being installed. An average person using a standard amount of energy would be spending a considerable amount for a small system that meets their current energy requirement. This is due to lack of energy conservation in todays appliances and poor efficiency of energy use in most places today.
Why Renewable Energy Costs So Much
Renewable energy, like other new technology products, faces its own bottlenecks ranging from shortage of materials to high cost of manpower. Also, while the parts use in making wind turbines and solar panels are scarce, the high costs of feedstuffs have directly increased the cost of biofuels.
Thus, renewable energy is just subject to other economic forces. In addition, the rising demand for energy worldwide is already putting pressure on the available renewable energy products. Thus, the force of supply and demand is a strongly affecting renewable energy costs.
Renewable Energy Costs Vs Cost of Conventional Energy
With time, it has been noticed that the cost curve for renewable energy decreases while that of conventional power increases. This is a major indicator of their long term advantages. There are three very important cost factors which include Capital costs, Maintenance costs, and Operating costs.
Capital Costs: Normally, the initial capital cost outlay for conventional power sources is less significant compared to renewable energy plants. While installation of most renewable energy plants require new technology and expensive equipments, conventional power sources already have cheap alternatives that are commonly used.
Maintenance Costs: This part of renewable energy costs is more or less the same as that of conventional energy sources. Engineers might have to check the performance of the machine or plant from time to time.
Operating Costs: This refers to the cost of the day-to-day running. This is where the cost of renewable energy completely shrinks as energy inputs (sun, water, wind etc) used to replenish lost energy is obtained freely compared to conventional power sources where fuels are constantly required to service them.
Generally, it is pertinent to understand that renewable energy costs are very much dependent on the overall level performance of the plant, the amount of sun available (for solar panels), wind (for turbines) and related parameters.
An average person who wants to participate in saving the earths climate by using renewable energy in spite of high cost of initial installation can expect a long-term financial savings. On the other hand, a large company, with heavy machines and many processes requiring heavy consumption of power can afford to invest in renewable energy and expect to cut down maintenance and operating expenses on power almost immediately.
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