3 ms·

You say as if 30% efficiency is an easy goal, but the most efficient fossil power plants reach ~60% (from what I've googled). That's the best efficiency we get

You say as if 30% efficiency is an easy goal, but the most efficient fossil power plants reach ~60% (from what I've googled). That's the best efficiency we get for just burning fossil fuel, a technology perfected over a century. Here we're talking about a technology that might (or might not) have been proven in a lab. Also, a likely outcome of lower energy price is that consumers will simply bypass fossil fuels. People won't buy gas-powered car if renewable electricity is much cheaper. So, basically, if renewables aren't cheap enough, you can't make profit. If they are cheap enough, they take away your customers. I'm not convinced that anyone can make money out of this.

jillesvangurp 8y ago
Petrol and diesel are not the only form of carbo hydrates in our economy. I agree EVs will likely replace ICE vehicles long before this scales. However, oil is used for a lot of other things as well in our industry, including e.g. plastics, solvents, etc. So having this will help on that front while also allowing us to continue to use combustion engines where that still makes sense. As an energy storage mechanism, petrol/diesel still offer pretty decent energy density. If it can be created cleanly and cheaply, the price won't matter that much. At 1 $/gallon, nobody cared about fuel cost. Hence the popularity of enormously inefficient cars in the US. This stuff has the potential to be cheaper still.