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Grid parity of solar energy: imminent fact or future's fiction

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  • Spiros Papaefthimiou, Manolis Souliotis, and Kostas Andriosopoulos

Abstract

One of the major questions related to renewable energy systems is whether we are approaching solar grid parity or not. Solar based power generation will play an important role in future sustainable energy mixes due to its high reliability, yield predictability and capacity for electricity production during peak demand when the electricity price is usually high. But nowadays the economic viability of these technologies depends on the subsidies usually granted, mainly by public authorities, and in a minor way by electricity producers. The article evaluates the potential of solar energy based technologies for viable electricity generation, focusing on Photovoltaics (PV) and Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) systems. The evaluation was not only focused on EU but also covered global markets, assessing the necessary barriers and thresholds preventing or boosting these technologies to reach grid parity. The observed rapid growth in deployment of the studied technologies (especially PV) in recent years is largely policy-driven and whether this trend will be sustainable depends on whether governments will continue to expand financial incentives and policy mandates, as well as address regulatory and market barriers.

Suggested Citation

  • Spiros Papaefthimiou, Manolis Souliotis, and Kostas Andriosopoulos, 2016. "Grid parity of solar energy: imminent fact or future's fiction," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Bollino-M).
    • Handle: RePEc:aen:journl:ej37-si2-papaefthimiou
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    Cited by:

    1. Karneyeva, Yuliya & Wüstenhagen, Rolf, 2017. "Solar feed-in tariffs in a post-grid parity world: The role of risk, investor diversity and business models," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 445-456.
    2. Maria Milousi & Manolis Souliotis & George Arampatzis & Spiros Papaefthimiou, 2019. "Evaluating the Environmental Performance of Solar Energy Systems Through a Combined Life Cycle Assessment and Cost Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-23, May.
    3. Zhang, Alex Hongliang & Sirin, Selahattin Murat & Fan, Conglai & Bu, Maoliang, 2022. "An analysis of the factors driving utility-scale solar PV investments in China: How effective was the feed-in tariff policy?," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 167(C).
    4. Goh, Tian & Ang, B.W. & Su, Bin & Wang, H., 2018. "Drivers of stagnating global carbon intensity of electricity and the way forward," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 149-156.
    5. Amedeo Argentiero, Tarek Atalla, Simona Bigerna, Silvia Micheli, and Paolo Polinori, 2017. "Comparing Renewable Energy Policies in EU-15, U.S. and China: A Bayesian DSGE Model," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(KAPSARC S).

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