The Cost of Energy

Numbers calculated by financial advisory Lazard as of June 2025 estimate price ranges for the generation of one MWh of energy by different sources. While the data shows that it is always cheapest to produce electricity from fully depreciated facilities, renewable energy can nevertheless compete in today's market when it comes to prices even when disregarding federal subsidies. Gas, nuclear and coal energy generation cost between $30 and $75 per MWh from fully depreciated plants, but including the price of building facilities, this was more in the range of around $50 to $110 for combined-cycle gas, $70 to $170 for coal and $140 to $220 for nuclear amid a difficult regulatory environment.

At the same time, geothermal energy production cost $66 to $109 per MWh, while the cost of onshore wind energy and solar photovoltaic energy at the utility level ranged from under $40 to just $86 and $78 per MWh, respectively. Offshore wind enery costs ran a little higher, at between $70 and $157 per MWh. Building these facilities can be more pricey, but typically solicits less pushback. The midpoint estimate for Virginia's planned offshore wind park stood at a comparably low $92 per MWh. At the same time, a MWh from Georgia's new nuclear plants Vogtle 3 and 4 - which became infamous for their cost overrun - was estimated at $169 and $228, respectively.

The most pricey way to produce energy is by single-cycle gas plants, but these also fulfill the function of meeting demand during spikes in energy use as they can be turned on and off quickly.