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Green Energy Futures: A Big Change for the Good pp 39–56Cite as

Palgrave Macmillan

Economic Issues: Green Energy Costs and Support Options

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Abstract

Renewable energy costs are falling, in some case dramatically, so that some are now competitive with conventional energy sources. Subsidy systems have helped them develop and will still be needed for most for a while, especially if subsidies continue to be offered to conventional energy technologies. But wind and PV solar are moving rapidly down their learning curves, and the other renewable options should follow. Guaranteed price Feed-in Tariffs have been the most successful support option, in some cases enabling consumers to buy into generating and exporting power themselves, thus changing the nature of the energy market. However, concerns about the need to maintain competitive pressures have led to new more market-orientated support schemes, for example, involving contract auctions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Open University, UK

    David Elliott (Emeritus Professor of Technology Policy)

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  1. David Elliott
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© 2015 David Elliott

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Elliott, D. (2015). Economic Issues: Green Energy Costs and Support Options. In: Green Energy Futures: A Big Change for the Good. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137584434_3

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