Solar to reach grid parity in Ontario by 2020, maybe earlier
Tuesday, December 9th, 2008I know there’s been a lot of talk about “grid parity” for solar PV without subsidies, and in which year this milestone is likely to be reached. The date I’ve heard the most is 2015, and even then, only in places with lots of sun and expensive electricity — like California. One could argue this is a pointless discussion, given that conventional forms of electricity generation are also subsidized (though this isn’t transparent) and don’t take into account externalities like the impact of pollution on the environment, health and the climate. But I digress.
At the Canadian Solar Industries Association two-day annual conference in Toronto today Andrew Kinross from Navigant Consulting said he expected grid parity in Ontario to be reached between 2020 and 2023. This is based on an expected increase in fossil fuel prices and the expectation that CO2 emission credits will be valued at $70 per ton. While 2020 might sound like a long time, one has to consider that Ontario currently has relatively inexpensive electricity prices in a North American context (and certaintly compared to Europe) and there are less hours of sunlight over a year compared to, say, California.
As much as 12 years sounds like a long time, I don’t see it that way. (more…)
Tyler Hamilton is editor-in-chief of Corporate Knights magazine and a business columnist for the Toronto Star, Canada's largest daily newspaper. In addition to this Clean Break blog, Tyler writes a weekly column of the same name that discusses trends, happenings and innovators in the clean technology and green energy market. This blog is a personal project started in April 2005. It is not an official blog of the newspaper.
