DOI: 10.5176/2251-3701_2.1.33
Authors: Tilak K. Doshi, Neil Sebastian D’Souza, Linh Nguyen, Teo Han Guan, Nahim Bin Zahur
Abstract:
This paper presents an economic and technical analysis of the feasibility of solar photovoltaics (PV) in the Singapore context. The Levelized Costs of Electricity (LCOE) methodology is used to evaluate the cost of electricity generated from solar PV systems over their economic lifetime. Using reasonable estimates for key parameters, the model calculates the break-even price – the price at which the costs of solar power are just balanced by its revenues over the life of the equipment – to be S26 ¢/kWh, on par with the average Singapore 2011 electricity tariff rate. Module costs and the annual yield of solar PV systems are found to be the main factors determining the LCOE. We compare the LCOE across a range of technologies and find that solar PV is both a more expensive means of electricity generation than most other technologies, including combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT) and coal, as well as an expensive means of CO2 emission mitigation. Projections of the LCOE of solar PV using experience curves indicate that solar PV is likely to become more cost-competitive relative to other technologies in the future.
Keywords: solar photovoltaic, LCOE, Singapore, grid parity, experience curves
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