Anyone know why the project bids are in units of energy? From my experience with home solar projects are priced in units of power.
(EDIT: From further in the article, these look like operating costs, not e.g. initial build-out costs that one would be quoted for a home installation. Makes sense, though I wonder now if they include amortized build-out costs.)
And then, why the mixing of MWh and kW·mo? They're similar orders of magnitude, why add in a layer of confusion with the constant factor difference? (For reference: multiply $/kW·mo by 1.39 to obtain $/MWh.)
"Pricing is provided in $/kW-mo terms for those generation types that can be viewed as dispatchable and likely to provide high levels of generation capacity credit. Pricing is provided in $/MWh terms for those generation types or
resources that are non-dispatchable or that include a storage component with a non-dispatchable base generation resource."
They're paying for whatever wind and solar can provide but require fossil fuel plants to produce what actually need.
While I am unsure about the different units for conventional vs. renewable energy, pricing for large scale power projects is generally reviewed on a per unit of generation basis, not a capital cost basis. That way the cost incorporates all costs, including operations, maintenance, financing, insurance, and so on, and also includes expected plant performance levels. The $/MWh cost to the utility is the fairest way to compare different sites and different technologies.
(EDIT: From further in the article, these look like operating costs, not e.g. initial build-out costs that one would be quoted for a home installation. Makes sense, though I wonder now if they include amortized build-out costs.)
And then, why the mixing of MWh and kW·mo? They're similar orders of magnitude, why add in a layer of confusion with the constant factor difference? (For reference: multiply $/kW·mo by 1.39 to obtain $/MWh.)