WindEurope’s latest study, in cooperation with Hitachi Energy, shows that even when accounting for the grids, storage and back-up, a system running on a high share of renewables is significantly cheaper.

Mapping out the total system costs of five energy scenarios, four of the scenarios delivering net-zero and one ‘slow transition’ scenario where Europe does not meet its climate targets, results in scenarios that rely more heavily on nuclear, hydrogen or CCS being more costly than a renewables-based scenario. By 2050 the differences in costs range from €487bn to €860bn.

Also, the renewables-based energy system is €1.6tn less expensive than a system where Europe fails to deliver on net-zero. The €1.6tn difference is largely due to residual fuel costs and the costs of carbon in the slow transition scenario. Already by 2035 the renewables scenario saves €331bn compared to the slow transition scenario.

The renewables-based energy system entails a major increase in the share of electricity in the energy mix. And that electrification requires major investment, especially in heavy industry. But even when accounting for investment in electrification a renewables-based scenario is the cheapest overall and the most resilient to external shocks. Of all the scenarios the renewables scenario has the lowest dependency on energy fuel imports.

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