Renewable sources in the United States caught up with the classic at the cost of electricity received

The day that the energy industry has been waiting for so long seems to come. Over the past few years, the cost of energy derived from wind turbines and solar panels has dropped so much that in some markets it has become lower than the cost of energy obtained from burning coal or natural gas - says the NY Times . And the fall in prices is only accelerating - this year several companies have signed long-term contracts for the purchase of energy at more favorable prices than ordinary ones. This is especially true of those areas of the USA where there are a lot of sunny and windy days. And although such prices are due to the presence of government subsidies, which will decline over time, alternative energy is already on the heels of classical energy.

According to a study by the investment company Lazard of wholesale energy prices, now the energy received from the sun costs 5.6 cents per kWh and 1.4 cents per kWh from wind. Without subsidies - 7.2 cents and 3.7 cents, respectively.
For comparison, energy from natural gas costs 6.1 cents, from coal - 6.6 cents. Jonathan Mir, Managing Director Lazard, who has been comparing prices for various energy sources since 2008, comments on the study as follows: “It’s quite remarkable when comparing prices with those that were only five years ago, to see a decline in the cost of new technologies.”

In Russia, due to the abundance of natural mineral resources and the lack of sunny days, such energy sources are not popular. The energy received from hydroelectric power plants is about 16%. Smaller countries than the US have long been trying to get rid of dependence on oil, gas and coal, and switch to renewable energy. A new record was set in Germany this summer - more than 50% of daily consumption was obtained from photocells. Denmark receives 25% of all energy from wind turbines.