Low cost, uncertain value: Why cheap PV may still not become UK’s main power source

Abstract

We contrast a recent assessment by Mandys etal. that dropping PV LCOE in the UK will lead to photovoltaics becoming the most competitive renewable energy technology by 2030, by arguing that (1) strong seasonal variation, (2) too little demand correlation, and (3) highly concentrated production periods still lead to overall more competitiveness and less system cost of wind power production.