Distributed solar PV and distributed energy resources (DERs) are a key part of the sustainable energy future. Compared to conventional power, the costs and benefits of DERs are more distributed in nature. We have developed the Levelised Cost Calculator for Distributed Energy Resources as a part of our efforts to quantify these costs and benefits.

The first version of the tool was released in October 2020. The latest update (version 2.0) was released in April 2021. The tool can calculate the levelised cost of energy from different RE technologies as well as energy storage. For calculation of levelised cost of storage (LCOS), detailed mechanics of energy storage, such as annual degradation of the storage capacity, depth of discharge (DoD), etc. are taken into account. For example, calculations with the tool show that, as of 2021, LCOS for a medium-sized solar PV + Li-ion storage system (50 kWh battery system, 4 hr storage, 30% solar generation going through the battery) is around INR 11.00/kWh. This is projected to drop to around INR 7.50/kWh by 2030.

In the future, we plan to further develop an avoided costs calculator to accompany the current tool to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the value of DERs, from both utility and consumer perspectives.

Click here to download the Excel calculation tool. Please enable editing and macros to use the Excel tool.