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Tesla's Solar Roof Pricing Is Cheap Enough to Catch Fire
Tesla Inc. has begun taking $1,000 deposits for its remarkable solar roof tiles—to be delivered this summer at a price point that could expand the U.S. solar market.
Tesla will begin with production of two of the four styles it unveiled in October: a smooth glass and a textured glass tile. 1 Roofing a 2,000 square-foot home in New York state—with 40 percent coverage of active solar tiles and battery backup for night-time use—would cost about $50,000 after federal tax credits and generate $64,000 in energy over 30 years, according to Tesla's website calculator.
That's more expensive upfront than a typical roof, but less expensive than a typical roof with traditional solar and back-up batteries. The warranty is for the lifetime of your home.
"The pricing is better than I expected, better than everyone expected," said Hugh Bromley, a solar analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance who had been skeptical about the potential market impact of the new product. Tesla's cost for active solar tiles is about $42 per square foot, "significantly below" BNEF's prior estimate of $68 per square foot, Bromley said. Inactive tiles will cost $11 per square foot.
Also: Elon Musk has discovered a new passion in life — and it could be Tesla's best product yet
(Score: 2) by Immerman on Sunday May 14 2017, @02:10PM (2 children)
Of course the market is extremely short-sighted, and happy to profit off as many externalities as possible.
But something like a substantial carbon tax would help to remove fossil energy's substantial externalized costs, but would end up increase energy costs for everyone. You could potentially offset that by immediately redistributing the tax proceeds to the population though - either as a straight per-capita carbon income, or perhaps as a per-watt rebate - get the same rebate regardless of energy source, but only pay the tax on fossil energy, so that you come out ahead by buying non-fossil energy.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday May 14 2017, @03:06PM (1 child)
Something like this, right?
https://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2014/08/09/the-unsung-inventor-carbon-tax/f1xFyWmaXf2XzW3nVxrNJK/story.html [bostonglobe.com]
... In 1973, OPEC’s oil embargo had Americans lining up for blocks at gas stations that were running dry. Amid calls for gas rationing, Wilson proposed an alternative: Spur conservation by taxing fossil fuels, but keep the revenue out of government coffers by returning it all in equal dividend checks to every adult. ...
Here is the original proposal including a number of details and some updates for this century:
http://lessgovletsgo.org/?page_id=2 [lessgovletsgo.org]
(Score: 2) by Immerman on Sunday May 14 2017, @04:34PM
Something like that, yes. It's far from a new idea, but is consistently opposed by one of the most powerful and well-funded lobbyist groups in the nation - for good reason, since it is an open attack on their rapacious business model.