IRENA: 46% reduction in the cost of concentrated solar power generation from 2010 to 2018

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) reported that energy production and installation costs for concentrated solar power (CSP) projects fell significantly in 2018, down about
46% from 2010.

In its latest report "Renewable Energy Generation Costs" in 2018, IRENA analyzes several financial and technical parameters
related to concentrated solar power projects.
The agency noted that despite being less popular compared to other renewable energy technologies, CSPs have significant prospects in the future and their costs are expected to fall
further.

The weighted average LCOE of CSP projects in 2018 was 18.
6¢/kWh, down 26% from 2017 and 46%
from 2010.
Only 0.
5 gigawatts of CSP capacity was installed in 2018, with China, Morocco and South Africa dominating
.

IRENA noted that the main reasons for the decline in LCOE are improvements in China's supply chain, as well as competitive auctions
over the past few years.

The weighted average installed cost also fell 28% in 2018 to $5,204/kW
.
That's about 41 percent lower than the 2010 cost and 50 percent
lower than the 2011 cost.
In addition to the inherently high costs associated with CSP projects, installation costs are high
due to the small number of commissioned projects.
However, installation costs are expected to decline
in the coming years as more projects are expected to be invested in China and the Middle East-North Africa (MENA) region.

The capacity utilization rate of CSP projects has also increased significantly, increasing by 15% year-on-year in 2018 and 50% from 2010, and the capacity parameter is 45%, and the average efficiency of CSP projects has been at an all-time high in the past 9 years
.
IRENA noted that more power plants are being installed in China and the MENA region, where solar radiation resources are more abundant
compared to traditional CSP markets such as Spain.

IRENA believes that CSP's LCOE will fall to the range of 6-10¢/kWh in the
near future.
This will be a direct result
of competitive auctions in the MENA region, growing developer experience, and improved supply chains.
While there is only 5.
5 gigawatts of capacity worldwide, IRENA believes CSPs will play an important role
in the renewable energy mix due to the ability to provide dispatchable renewable energy through the use of storage technologies.
The agency expects the role of CSPs to increase
in areas where energy technologies such as solar PV and wind power are volatile.