Solar prices have plummeted, and that use case can skip storage issues (just run...

fbdab103 · on July 23, 2023

As a consumer, falling solar prices have not led to a noticeable decrease in my electrical bill.

etimberg · on July 23, 2023

At some point the price of the bill is dominated by the fixed transmission costs which won't go away as long as there is a power grid.

cronix · on July 23, 2023

As a recent convert to solar, we no longer have any electric bill, period.

ourmandave · on July 23, 2023

They haven't tried to bill you for "maintaining the grid" cost?

markdown · on July 24, 2023

No, but hopefully they do soon, or tax me somehow. Having a grid is important.

dpierce9 · on July 23, 2023

What do you think the price would be without solar? The answer: higher.

redeeman · on July 23, 2023

sure, but only because they purposely exclude those that would be cheaper :)

nerdawson · on July 23, 2023

If you use solar to generate electricity then the cost of that electricity is whatever you’re missing out on by not selling it to the grid.

jes5199 · on July 24, 2023

grid-connected solar generation often gets “curtailed” on very sunny days, so it’s market value is $0. On those days, desalinate.

Libcat99 · on July 23, 2023

On the other hand, you could have a system that pumps out water or power, depending on current needs and market.

ehnto · on July 24, 2023

Desal plants need to be running constantly and incur untennable startup costs otherwise, if I am not mistaken. Perhaps state of the art has fixed that issue.