ANÁLISIS DE LA VIABILIDAD ECONÓMICA DE NUEVOS MODELOS DE SUMINISTRO ELÉCTRICO BASADOS EN ENERGÍAS RENOVABLES EN INDUSTRIAS INTENSIVAS EN ENERGÍA

Abstract

Energy-intensive industries - highly sensitive to the increase and volatility of the electricity price- are increasingly exposed to international competition. This fact is one of the main drivers of the ongoing process of relocation of this type of industry in some geographies. On the other hand, the greater requirements of economic efficiency, in addition to a high need for energy security and environmental sustainability, are driving a transformation process on the traditional model of electricity supply, increasing its degree of decentralization. This paper aims to evaluate the suitability, in economic terms for almost a hundred countries, of the development of alternative energy supply models for the energy intensive manufacturing sector based on renewable energies. In the initial phase of the study, a comparison of electricity supply cost has been made between the power network extension model and the distributed generation model. In addition, a sensitivity of the result has been analyzed according to the variability of the location. Finally, the profitability associated to a distributed generation project has been analyzed compared to the retail market price, determining the degree of economic viability per geography.