Why is solar more expensive in the U.S. than in other countries?
Solar energy comes up often on HN, but it is misleading to talk about solar without differentiating between utility grid solar and  consumer rooftop solar. Simply put, utility grid solar provides low cost power and consumer rooftop solar does not. The rooftop solar price is hidden because no power source has been as subsidized as rooftop solar. Besides direct subsidies, wealthier home owners are often paid the retail rate for the electricity they sell to the grid which causes higher electricity bills for those who can&#x27;t afford to put panels on their roof - sort of a reverse Robinhood scheme.<p>You can see the cost differences here:
<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.lazard.com&#x2F;perspective&#x2F;levelized-cost-of-energy-levelized-cost-of-storage-and-levelized-cost-of-hydrogen&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.lazard.com&#x2F;perspective&#x2F;levelized-cost-of-energy-...</a><p>Rooftops are unused space, but the land use is generally a small part of the cost. Utility scale solar will always have economies of scale compared to one-off small installations on someone&#x27;s roof.  A dollar spent on roof-top solar would be MUCH better spent on solar panels installed on the ground by the utility.<p>I am really not sure what to make of anyone who  supports the huge subsidies to make rooftop solar viable and then talks about the low cost of solar.