‘Key to China’s power future’: cost of solar to match coal power by 2023, scientists say
Solar power, when paired with adequate storage capacity, could meet more than 40 per cent of the country’s electricity demands by 2060, say researchers
Decarbonising the energy system is a priority for China to deal with air pollution at home and global climate change, according to Chinese-US paper
Researchers say solar photovoltaic power is expected to play an important role in next-gen zero-carbon power generation in China. Photo: Xinhua
The costs of solar and coal power will be comparable across China by 2023 as solar energy conversion becomes more efficient and the cost drops, according to a new study by researchers in China and the United States.
above pre-industrial levels, according to the team.
Solar was expected to be key to a future power system in a country in which coal had been the dominant energy source for more than 40 years, said the team of scientists from Tsinghua University, Nankai University, Renmin University of China and Harvard University in the US.
“The decline in costs for solar power and storage systems offers opportunity for solar-plus-storage systems to serve as a cost-competitive source for the future energy system in China,” the team wrote in an article published in the peer-reviewed journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United Statesof America on Monday.
“At present, subsidy-free solar power has become cheaper than coal power in most parts of China, and this cost-competitive advantage will soon be further enhanced and extended spatially due to technology advances and cost declines.”
The team projected that solar power in the north, northeast and east China and Tibet grids would achieve full price parity with coal in 2021, when solar power prices would be lower than the local on-grid tariffs for coal power, followed by the central, northwest and south China grids in 2023.
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The falling cost of solar power and storage technologies such as lithium-ion batteries – like those used in phones – brought an opportunity to integrate storage systems into solar power stations to better meet demand, they said.
Provinces including Henan, Inner Mongolia, Shandong, Shanxi and
, with households and businesses experiencing power shortages from time to time.
The country relies on massive amounts of coal to keep people warm, but some provinces cannot even keep the lights on amid high prices, production cuts and Beijing’s determination to cut emissions.
“One of the biggest challenges facing China is to deploy low or zero-carbon power generation capacity to meet the increased demand for electricity and to substitute for existing coal-fired capacity in the longer term.
“Among alternative sources, solar photovoltaic power generation is expected to play an important role in this process in China given abundant solar resources and huge PV manufacturing capacity,” they said.
China is the world’s biggest producer of solar power. It had 170 gigawatts of installed solar power capacity by the end of 2018, up from 77GW in 2016.
The country is also the world’s largest solar cell manufacturer, producing 110GW of the 144GW of solar cells made globally in 2019, according to the International Energy Agency.
‘Key to China’s power future’: cost of solar to match coal power by 2023, scientists say
Solar power, when paired with adequate storage capacity, could meet more than 40 per cent of the country’s electricity demands by 2060, say researchers
Decarbonising the energy system is a priority for China to deal with air pollution at home and global climate change, according to Chinese-US paper
Researchers say solar photovoltaic power is expected to play an important role in next-gen zero-carbon power generation in China. Photo: Xinhua
The costs of solar and coal power will be comparable across China by 2023 as solar energy conversion becomes more efficient and the cost drops, according to a new study by researchers in China and the United States.
above pre-industrial levels, according to the team.
Solar was expected to be key to a future power system in a country in which coal had been the dominant energy source for more than 40 years, said the team of scientists from Tsinghua University, Nankai University, Renmin University of China and Harvard University in the US.
“The decline in costs for solar power and storage systems offers opportunity for solar-plus-storage systems to serve as a cost-competitive source for the future energy system in China,” the team wrote in an article published in the peer-reviewed journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United Statesof America on Monday.
“At present, subsidy-free solar power has become cheaper than coal power in most parts of China, and this cost-competitive advantage will soon be further enhanced and extended spatially due to technology advances and cost declines.”
The team projected that solar power in the north, northeast and east China and Tibet grids would achieve full price parity with coal in 2021, when solar power prices would be lower than the local on-grid tariffs for coal power, followed by the central, northwest and south China grids in 2023.
EVERY SATURDAY
SCMP Global Impact Newsletter
By submitting, you consent to receiving marketing emails from SCMP. If you don't want these, tick here
The falling cost of solar power and storage technologies such as lithium-ion batteries – like those used in phones – brought an opportunity to integrate storage systems into solar power stations to better meet demand, they said.
Provinces including Henan, Inner Mongolia, Shandong, Shanxi and
, with households and businesses experiencing power shortages from time to time.
The country relies on massive amounts of coal to keep people warm, but some provinces cannot even keep the lights on amid high prices, production cuts and Beijing’s determination to cut emissions.
“One of the biggest challenges facing China is to deploy low or zero-carbon power generation capacity to meet the increased demand for electricity and to substitute for existing coal-fired capacity in the longer term.
“Among alternative sources, solar photovoltaic power generation is expected to play an important role in this process in China given abundant solar resources and huge PV manufacturing capacity,” they said.
China is the world’s biggest producer of solar power. It had 170 gigawatts of installed solar power capacity by the end of 2018, up from 77GW in 2016.
The country is also the world’s largest solar cell manufacturer, producing 110GW of the 144GW of solar cells made globally in 2019, according to the International Energy Agency.
