Full Title: Report to Congress on Assessment Potential Impact of Concentrating Solar Power for Electricity Generation
Author(s): n/a
Publisher(s): USDOE, EREE
Publication Date: February 1, 2007
Full Text: Download Resource
Description (excerpt):
The Energy Policy Act of 2005, section 934(c), directed the Secretary of Energy to:
(1) assess conflicting guidance on the economic potential of concentrating solar power for electricity production received from the National Research Council in the report entitled “Renewable Power Pathways: A Review of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Renewable Energy Programs” and dated 2000 and subsequent reviews of that report funded by the Department; and
(2) provide an assessment of the potential impact of technology used to concentrate solar power for electricity before, or concurrent with, submission of the budget for fiscal year 2008.
This report summarizes the Department of Energy’s (DOE) assessment of these issues.
The reports discussed in this document assess whether concentrating solar power (CSP) plants can become cost competitive with fossil fueled plants and how much this would cost taxpayers (excluding sunk costs). One report estimates that deployment incentives could cost $1.5 to $2.0 billion over 14 years. The reports also estimate that at the end of that period CSP could provide hundreds of gigawatts of electricity at 5 to 6 cents/kWh without further subsidies while also providing economic, environmental, and security benefits. Federal policymakers must weigh the benefits of subsidizing increased CSP deployment against the cost to taxpayers and electricity ratepayers.