Short version is that the US is a bit above-average globally on cost per watt, hampered somewhat by the current tariffs on modules and other equipment.
Within the US, the utility-scale hard costs will be roughly similar across regions, but the soft costs vary based on labor costs, labor efficiency, and permitting / interconnection costs.
I don't think federal reforms will move the nedle that much short-term on cash costs (permitting isn't that big of a cash cost in an absolute sense), but could have an important impact in speeding up projects (which is good for its own sake).
In the US we hear a lot about the cost of permitting and then also the barrier of slow to build transmission lines. Do you have a view on how impactful the current congressional legislation would be in that regard?
Also do you have a sense of how utility scale solar costs differ in the US and then other geographies globally? Thank you for the great analysis!
IRENA has a good overview of utility-scale costs globally here: https://www.irena.org/Publications/2023/Aug/Renewable-Power-Generation-Costs-in-2022
Short version is that the US is a bit above-average globally on cost per watt, hampered somewhat by the current tariffs on modules and other equipment.
Within the US, the utility-scale hard costs will be roughly similar across regions, but the soft costs vary based on labor costs, labor efficiency, and permitting / interconnection costs.
I don't think federal reforms will move the nedle that much short-term on cash costs (permitting isn't that big of a cash cost in an absolute sense), but could have an important impact in speeding up projects (which is good for its own sake).
In the US we hear a lot about the cost of permitting and then also the barrier of slow to build transmission lines. Do you have a view on how impactful the current congressional legislation would be in that regard?
Also do you have a sense of how utility scale solar costs differ in the US and then other geographies globally? Thank you for the great analysis!