Electricity generated by solar and onshore wind farms is the cheapest in Australia, a report from the national science agency has found.
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) on Thursday published the draft of its annual GenCost report for 2023-24, forecasting the generation cost of electricity from various sources through to 2030.
According to the report, a mix of wind and solar power in 2023 would generate electricity at a maximum cost of 134 Australian dollars (90.1 U.S. dollars) per megawatt hour (MWh), the lowest of any technology explored in the report.
In 2030, the CSIRO projects that wind and solar generation will cost a maximum of 100 Australian dollars (67.2 U.S. dollars) per MWh, still the cheapest option after factoring in more than 30 billion Australian dollars (20.1 billion U.S. dollars) of new transmission lines and back-up power projects that will be needed to support the country's green energy transition.
By comparison, the report found that nuclear small modular reactors (SMRs) would provide the most expensive power.
The federal opposition has repeatedly called for the Australian government to repeal a national ban on nuclear power developments in order to help deliver cheaper, more reliable electricity.
However, the CSIRO report found that SMR technology would currently generate electricity at a maximum cost of 640 Australian dollars (430.6 U.S. dollars) per MWh, falling to 350 Australian dollars (235.5 U.S. dollars) per MWh in 2030 when only a hydrogen power plant would be more expensive.
Dietmar Tourbier, Director of Energy at the CSIRO, said that GenCost would help the Australian electricity market plan for the future.
"As we work to reduce our emissions, GenCost plays a pivotal role in guiding decision-makers to plan and build reliable, low-cost energy solutions that will help power the future of Australia," he said in a media release.
The federal government has set a target of 82 percent of Australia's electricity coming from renewable sources by 2030.
