Hello Friends,

In the previous article we spent some time investigating both he types of electricity generation as well as the relationship between large scale electricity production to meets the of a large populace and environmental friendliness. We discussed how diversifying the energy generation techniques into more renewable and non-conventional sources can slowly ease the dependency of large scale electricity generation on non-renewable and conventional electricity generation sources. In this article we will be adding an extra factor into this equation – money. To provide electricity for an entire populace is often times very difficult not to mention costly.

So, it is obvious that each type of electricity generation has an attached cost. Often times what we find is that the more environmentally friendly the source of electricity, the more expensive it is. Also, the non-conventional sources are often time less efficient and less capable of producing the large quantities of power which conventional sources and produce in a short amount of time. Therefore, the short term and upfront costs of such power production is very high – often times too high for a nation to afford. With the pressing matter of providing electricity for a large populace, the environmental friendliness issue may not top the priority list of nations. And in this case, there is no easy solution. The case is highly dependent upon the situation the nation faces. However, there is one important thing which must be kept in mind. This is the long term costs versus short term costs. With climate change being an issue which affects the whole world, including every single country – every country has the responsibility of doing their best to solve this issue. This responsibility stems from not only the duty to protect the Earth but also to solve the long term problems which may stem from the climate change issue. With non-renewable electricity sources being a major factor driving global GHG emissions, solving the issue of cost effective green energy production may be the solution to the global climate change issue.

Policy makers when making the decisions regarding the electricity sector and infrastructure of their nations must ensure that they account for the long term costs of their decisions. While the short term costs of integrating renewable and non-conventional sources into the sector as mentioned in the previous article may be rather high, the long term benefits must be accounted for. Firstly, having a infrastructure which is to some degree independent of a global commodity makes the energy sector somewhat independent to global economic fluctuations. For example, a sector based on oil and natural gas may be liable to fluctuations in the prices of these commodities which is not in the hands of the country. Non-conventional sources on the other hand are not liable to such thing with solar radiation and tides for example, not being a global commodity. Hence the availability and price of electricity in a nation is both independent of global economic situation and any commodity.

Furthermore, as climate change becomes an issue upon the global forum, major countries face challenges from a political pressures to become greener.  Emerging superpower countries such as India and China with large populations face the political challenge to become greener as their fully developed counterparts. But, to support the electricity needs of its people, cost effective solutions are needed. For these emerging nations, incorporating green non-conventional power sources into their respective sectors will allow for them to emerge as global leaders in these areas.

Also, the long term effects of polluting or dangerous conventional sources are very eminent. Coal and natural gas causes pollution which harms the long term health of citizens in the surrounding area through the production of smog. Nuclear power poses major risks as well through accidents in history being a lesson to the danger of that particular source. The cost of these accidents, both human and financial are massive. The cost of supporting increasing health issues of a nation created through air pollution are even larger.

Hence, it starts to become clear that by adopting the greener alternative routes to energy production, countries do stand to gain a lot. However these gains are not immediate but rather very long term. When budgets are tight and demands are high, the short term cost is often the only thing which is regarded, however decision makers worldwide should also keep in mind the long term issues associated with their decisions.

So, now we have created a complete picture of the electricity generation of a nation across all three major points: sufficient quantity, environmental friendliness, and cost effectiveness. These factors interact and make up the electricity generation industry of a nation. However through exploring these interactions we can learn and by learning make better decisions for not just our communities but also for the whole world.

If you have any questions of comments for this article please feel free to comment below.

Thank you,

Nitish Bhatt