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Wind, solar face price obstacles amid recession

Written by (MATTHEW L. WALD New York Times
Monday, 30 March 2009
As Congress moves to pass a bill to reduce emissions of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, the prospect of carbon-free renewable energy will get brighter. But a lingering question remains over how much more consumers will be willing to pay. Cutting CO2 will almost certainly raise electricity prices, experts say, and so will increasing the nation's reliance on renewable energy. Pitching that idea to consumers becomes increasingly difficult in times of deep economic recession. "Consumers right now are extremely price-sensitive," said Barry Moline, executive director of the Florida Municipal Electric Association, whose member utilities serve about 3 million people. Wind and solar are generally more expensive than base-load coal-fired power plants because they often require companies to build accompanying gas-fired power plants to compensate when wind or sun output is low. Set as favorite Bookmark Email This Comments (0) Subscribe to this comment's feed Write comment You must be logged in to a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.
Last Updated ( Tuesday, 31 March 2009 )