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How lower costs and technology are powering demand for renewables
Solar and wind power are reaching price and performance parity on and off the grid, enabling their greater deployment amid a rising demand
Chito Santiago 17 Sep 2018
RENEWABLE energy sources, notably solar and wind, are reaching price and performance parity on and off the grid, enabling their greater deployment amid a rising demand.
A new report by Deloitte on global renewable energy trends released on September 14 notes that three key enablers – parity and performance parity, grid integration and technology – are helping solar and wind become equivalent to conventional sources of energy. These enablers also allow solar and wind to compete with conventional sources on price, while matching their performance.
At the same time, as technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and 3-D printing continue to advance their deployment of renewables, prices will likely continue to fall, thus improving their accessibility.
Deloitte global renewable energy leader Marlene Motyka notes that demand for renewable energy sources has grown tremendously in recent years. “Governments, communities, emerging markets and corporations increasingly understand that renewables are sustainable and affordable, and they want them included in current and future procurement plans.”
Motyka says countries such as China, the US and Germany have already reached price parity for certain renewable sources. She adds that with prices continuing to drop, developed countries and emerging markets alike have their ability to integrate renewables into their grid systems to ensure competitive advantage.
On China, Sandy Lv, Deloitte China energy and resource industry consulting partner says innovation and technology have and will continue to push the country’s renewable energy towards price cut and even grid parity with traditional sources. “There are challenges, such as inadequate transmission capability, oversupply and prevailing global trade protectionism. That said, China’s continued growth in use of renewable energy is an irreversible trend given its commitment to combat climate change and reach peak emissions by 2030 under the Paris Agreement.”
In reaching price and performance parity, Deloitte notes the unsubsidized cost of solar and wind power has become comparable or cheaper than the traditional sources in much of the world. New storage options are now making renewables more dispatchable, which was once an advantage of conventional energy sources.
Once seen as an obstacle, wind and solar power are now viewed as a solution to grid balancing. They have demonstrated an ability to strengthen grid resilience and reliability, and provide essential grid services.
According to Deloitte, smart inverters and advanced controls have enabled wind and solar to provide grid reliability services related to frequency, voltage and ramping as well or better than the other generation sources. When combined with smarter inverters, wind and solar can ramp up much faster than conventional plants, help stabilize the grid even after the sun sets and the wind stops and, for solar photovoltaic, show much higher response accuracy than any other source.
Meanwhile, technology is accelerating the deployment of renewables. Automation and advanced manufacturing are improving the production and operation of renewables by reducing the costs and time of implementing renewable energy system.

Artificial intelligence can fine tune weather forecasting, optimizing the use of renewable resources, while blockchain can enable energy attributable certificate markets to help resolve trust and bureaucratic hurdles. Advanced materials, on the other hand, are transforming the materials of solar panels and wind turbines. 

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