Renewable energy reduces the highest electric rates in the nation

In a world getting increasingly more dependent on electrical power for its work, generating electricity in sufficient amounts and at affordable rates is one of the biggest problems the world faces today. We have been learning the benefits of renewable sources for many years now but one of its major hindrances has been sustaining the amount of power it produces and it is often more expensive than the non-renewable energy sources.

Coal is the primary source of fuel for Midwest electric utilities. Researchers from Michigan Technological University have found that increasing sources of renewable energy and distributing their generation can save a lot of money for the Michigan electric consumers.

Generating electricity for one’s own household using solar power has become more affordable now than using traditional sources like coal. As the use of these sources in technologies increase and the access to this power becomes more widespread, the consumer costs for electricity decrease.

Three researchers from Michigan Technological University have published a paper called "Policies to Overcome Barriers for Renewable Energy Distributed Generation: A Case Study of Utility Structure and Regulatory Regimes in Michigan”. It was published in the special issue on energy policies of the journal Energies.

Michigan Utilities have now begun to recognize the benefits of renewable energy. Some utilities have started shifting their portfolios and agendas from traditional power generation to large scale wind and solar power generation.

It has been noted in the paper that 70% of all coal plants operate at a cost higher than renewable energy plants and by 2030 the number will stand at a 100%. They have even provided a breakdown of the savings the consumers will have per kilowatt hour in each county of Michigan if they used solar photovoltaic cells to produce their own electricity.

In the Upper Peninsula, the customers can save almost 7 cents per kilowatt hour. With an average use of 600 kilowatt hours per month, each consumer can save $42 per bill. Downstate, this number is approximately $30 per bill. But all consumers in Michigan cannot take this advantage as not all utilities provide additional net-metered distributed generation.

According to the researchers, not allowing the consumers to install such electricity sources which are cheaper and reliable also inhibits the grid from being more decentralized. Being decentralized makes a grid less vulnerable to attack.

With various other in-depth researches, this study serves to prove that if allowed to generate their own power, the average Michigan consumer can save a lot of money per bill.