The new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) on the cost of electricity generation from renewable energy in 2024 confirms that renewable energy was able to defend its cost leadership on the global electricity markets.
According to the report, photovoltaics were on average 41 percent cheaper than the cheapest alternative from fossil fuels, while onshore wind projects were 53 percent cheaper. At 3.4 US cents per kilowatt hour, onshore wind power remained the cheapest source of new electricity from renewable energies, closely followed by photovoltaics at 4.3 US cents per kilowatt hour.
By adding 582 gigawatts of renewable capacity in 2024, the use of fossil fuels worth around 57 billion US dollars could be avoided, according to the report. Remarkably, 91 percent of new renewable energy projects commissioned last year were more cost-effective than all new fossil fuel alternatives.
IRENA predicts that the cost of renewable energy in Europe and North America could rise due to structural challenges such as permitting delays, limited grid capacity and higher system balance costs. Regions such as Asia, Africa and South America, on the other hand, could see a significant decrease in costs with higher learning rates and high renewable energy potential.
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