📈Chartpack: An update on the declining cost of solar

Solar's exponential price decline, and what's next

Hi,

It’s

Nathan Warren

here.

Amongst the difficult news of climate change, we know that the rise in solar energy is one bright spot. In the past 12 months, solar module prices have dropped by 40%. This continues a decades-long decline. Today we are going to look at what has underpinned this cost decline, and the one crucial roadblock that solar cost metrics miss.

In this Chartpack, you will learn:

• Why solar energy’s growth has defied expectations,

• The problem of accounting for intermittency,

• And how to fill the exponential gap between an energy system designed for fossil fuels, and the fast growth of renewables.

Let’s go!

Exponential View via Midjourney

---

Exponential solar

In recent years, the solar energy sector has gone exponential. Characterised by a remarkable downward trend in costs and bolstered by continual technological advancements, this growth paints a promising picture of a sustainable energy future.

Although it only comprised 2.06% of global energy consumption in 2022, solar PV’s share is bound to grow fast. For example, in the United States, more than half of new electricity-generating capacity in 2023 will be solar.