ABSTRACT
When one asks the question “If renewable energy is a panacea, then why there are so few large renewable energy generation systems in the world?” The simple answer is “Because fossil fuels and nuclear energy are cheaper and more convenient to use.” At present, there are no financial costs associated with the emission of greenhouse gases, and very little cost is associated with the production of nuclear waste. In addition, these fuels are available—as energy stored for millennia—to be used at any time of day or night and regardless of the weather conditions. Nuclear and coal power plants, built in the 1970s and 1980s, produce electricity at less than US$0.025/kWh. Because of this cost structure, it is difficult for an electricity-generating corporation to justify investing in wind turbines that would produce electricity at US$0.05/kWh or solar farms that would produce at US$0.12–US$0.15/kWh and only during the daylight hours. At the higher prices of renewable energy, it is the good will, governmental subsidies and mandates, and the unencumbered environmental cost that may induce corporations to produce more renewable energy.
