Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels | How do They Compare?

renewable energy vs fossil fuels

Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels- You may think, like many other people, that it’s essential to improve the infrastructure for renewable energy rather than continue to discover and use fossil fuels. Although, just because you understand we require to develop alternative energy sources, you may not know completely why or which forms will be the most supportable. Today, we’re going to look at the differences between fossil fuels and renewable energy sources, why most people trust in a future fueled by renewable energy, and what that will practically mean for the world we live in.

Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels: How Do They Compare?

Suppose you’ve been following the ongoing comparison between renewable energy and fossil fuels. In that case, it might seem like conquering sources on which the world economy is dependent – coal, oil, and natural gas – will be fully phased out of existence in the future. These sources still energize most of the planet, while renewable sources like wind and solar just contribute some three to four percent of world energy capacity. This reality check begs an important question: how does renewable energy stack up against fossil sources, and why is there so much excitement about the growth of renewable energy?

renewable energy vs fossil fuels
Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels (Reference: news.energysage.com)

Are Renewable Resources More Expensive Than Fossil Fuels?

Although renewable resources are expensive to set, renewable energy is typically cheap to employ. Sources like wind and solar can generate the energy “for free” for the life-cycle of the panel or a turbine’s life. Fossil fuels need more costs since they have to be discovered, extracted, and moved to power plants to be employed.

In fact, after the manufacturing process, many renewable energy projects can produce power at about half the price of fossil fuels, and this is projected to get less expensive in the future as renewable powers become more usual.

Cost of Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels

As we will present below, government subsidies play a major role in how renewable energy sources will start to increase, but first, let’s take a look at the price of renewable energy vs fossil fuels without subsidies to get a practical concept of the price difference.

renewable energy vs fossil fuels
Cost of Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels (Reference: netrinc.com)

According to the global energy costs, coal costs have averaged close to 0.06 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), small-scale natural gas costs have reduced as low as 0.03 cents/kWh, and steam from fossil fuel costs have averaged close to 0.05 cents/kWh, and until the last 15 years, renewable energy costs didn’t come anywhere near as little as this.

This is why it came as a shock when, in 2017, a major commercial solar farm presented a particularly little cost for photovoltaic power at 0.029 cents/kWh. This leveled out the price between renewable sources and fossil fuels, so this can no longer be an excuse for why fossil products are still being employed so greatly.

Fossil Fuel vs Renewable Energy Subsidies in the US

One of the reasons that renewable energy is now so applicable in the United States is based on the energy subsidies introduced by the Government. They provide these subsidies to businesses and consumers to encourage them to utilize more sustainable energy sources in the fight against climate variation.

renewable energy vs fossil fuels
Setting Record Straight (Reference: wri.org)

Renewable energy subsidies are financial incentives that decrease the price of employing renewable energy sources hoping that more consumers, and energy industries in general, will make the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energies.

While initial installation prices are comparatively high, as the subsidies come in the format of tax breaks or as direct payments, governments are functionally paying for these basic prices, so switching to the utilization of renewable energy sources will be less expensive in the long run.

Is Renewable Energy Better Than Fossil Fuels?

In terms of being more suitable for the planet, most definitely. Renewable energy resources are much safer than fossil fuels and, in some aspects, like wind power and solar, they are generally clean sources of power.

When burnt, fossil products give out great concentrations of CO2 into the environment – the basic cause of global warming – always causing irreversible harm to wildlife, humans, and the environment.

In addition, fossil sources are depleting at a constant rate, and so it is estimated that in about 200 years, fossil products will cease to exist. On the other hand, renewable energy comes naturally, with unlimited resources, such as the wind, sun, and water, and can all be harnessed in a method that is almost fully harmless to the atmosphere. It can be said that renewable energy is the step we should take toward a sustained world. If you want to compare renewable energy vs fossil fuels more precisely, visit here.

What is the Difference Between Renewable Energy and Fossil Fuels?

As discussed above, the important difference between renewable energy and fossil fuels is how long they can last.

Because renewable energy is harnessed from permanent natural procedures, this power can be employed repeatedly without reduction. Renewable energies include:

  • Wind Power
  • Solar energy
  • Geothermal Power
  • Hydroelectricity
  • Biomass Energy

Note that some resources of biomass type, especially wood, practically emit more CO2 during burning than coal. Although it is still seen to be a renewable energy resource since trees can be replanted to recover what was lost, it only cannot be introduced as ‘clean’.

On the other hand, fossil fuels refill naturally over time, but this can take millions of years. Fossil fuels include:

  • Oil
  • Coal
  • Natural gas

Natural gas is occasionally introduced as being a ‘clean’ energy source since it burns more cleanly than coal, although it still emits some CO2 for combustion, so this isn’t strictly right – it’s just clean in comparison with something like coal.

Can Renewable Energy Replace Fossil Fuels?

Wind power and solar energy are becoming more and more popular as the main types of renewable energy and may soon become a typical resource of energy. As long as renewable energy methods keep improving to rise the reliability and efficiency of this type of power, there is no reason why renewable power could not replace fossil products.

renewable energy vs fossil fuels
Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels (Reference: inspirecleanenergy.com)

As the industry becomes more aware of environmental matters and as large corporations start to invest more in renewable energy, costs will reduce even further so that it is more feasible to support consumers all around the world.

What is the Best Alternative to Fossil Fuel?

Three renewable energy resources are the most appropriate options to alternate fossil fuels:

  • Solar Energy: this is a clean energy source; solar panels are employed to transform sunlight into electricity. This can either be utilized on a commercial foundation, with great solar farms or on a domestic foundation with solar panels arranged on a roof of a building. Solar elements are justly unobtrusive, and solar energy is calculated at 0.13 cents per kWh. Domestic solar panels can remove the electric bills, so you will only require to pay the initial price of installment.
  • Wind Power: this is a clean power source where kinetic energy from the source is transformed into a mechanical type employing a wind turbine. Wind power costs are between $0.08 and 0.16 cents per kWh. Turbines come in a range of forms but can stand upwards of 330 feet, so they need a lot of space, like in open waters.
  • Hydroelectric Power: this is used in regions where electrical power is made when water moves across a turbine and energizes a generator. With an average price of only 0.04 cents per kWh, this is the less expensive resource of renewable energy.

What is the most suitable part about these renewable energy sources? You can use all of them and more to energize your home with 100% clean power.

 

How Reliable is Alternative and Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels?

The reliability of renewable energy is largely based on how the energy is produced, where it is placed, and whether energy can be saved or not. For example, wind power is periodic, i.e. you cannot ensure that it will be windy all year so it could be seen as undependable in this case. The same can be said for solar energy.

Although the energy produced by renewable resources can be saved within lead batteries, this storage produced is being developed all the time.

If renewable energy is employed to contribute to the system, it can help to improve the security and reliability of the system based on flexibility improvement. Renewable energies have much more potential to respond to variations in energy usage, and there are various renewable energy solutions. They also present the opportunity to make a more robust system configuration as they are more adjustable for a variety of applications.

With methods and technologies continuously evolving, probably, the reliability of renewable energy will only improve in the years to come.

Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels in the Future

Many people agree that it is much more essential that alternative, renewable power resources are improved worldwide than to carry on depleting the fossil product reserves based on a survey carried out by the International Meteorological Institutes.

With an increased requirement for renewable energy and costs dropping at a fixed rate, the renewable energy demand is already growing quick. Thankfully, a lot of utility designers have considered this change and are operating to make methods into taking more suitable advantages of renewable powers, but not yet ditching fossil products altogether.

While fossil fuels may still be the major source of energy in the world, renewable energy will most surely be dominating the power market in the future.

Renewable Energy vs Fossil Fuels: How to Choose Clean Energy Today

We don’t just present clean energy to our viewers in this post; we want the movement into cleaner energy for a healthier, greener planet.

You can decrease your carbon footprint seriously when you switch to employing clean energy in your buildings, and you’ll also grow the demand for clean energy. This greater demand will encourage energy companies and the government to develop more clean energy sources. In other words, you have undoubtedly nothing to lose, and the world has everything to obtain.

Some Common Utilities Are Becoming Renewable

Most electric utility designers are aware of the reality that the power landscape is modifying, and some are taking steps to develop renewables while keeping their usual fossil fuel services and portfolios. Some utilities practically build out green energy projects, while others fund through renewable type certificates or credits (RECs). RECs are tradable acceptances that guarantee an organization or individual generated or purchased renewable energy.

Many electric utilities provide green energy within REC purchasing, giving users the option to support the diversification of their energy system. RECs also help make transparent requests for renewable energy and enable common utilities to vary their offerings without destabilizing day-to-day business.

Buying RECs isn’t like buying renewable power directly because while energy enters the system, it is nearly impractical to tell where it originated. Instead, when users buy RECs, they are purchasing a certificate of power ownership, so they can usefully claim a portion of green power on the system. For many organizations and people, buying RECs is a feasible solution to support renewable-type infrastructures, particularly if they are not in a position to develop solar systems or other renewable energy technology for their businesses or homes.

Summary

Fossil fuels may control the energy marketplace today, but the energy in the future is renewable. Individuals and corporations can help make that future a reality even simpler by participating in renewable power incentive programs, reducing the use of fossil fuel products like plastics and gasoline, and conserving electricity.

 

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