Fossil Fueled Energy Production Fading

I came across this headline at Bloomberg.com written by Tom Randall--
     Wind and Solar Are Crushing Fossil Fuels
     Record clean energy investment outpaces gas and coal 2 to 1

After reading his article I think I can see why... * Fossil fuel prices are at an all time low. Former investors in energy aren't expecting to see the kind of returns they once enjoyed. Since fossil fuels are heading down while alternative energies are a growth industry it would be a safer bet investing in them.

* Nuclear and all the fossil fueled generators owned by electric companies are more costly to operate. Solar panels need practically no maintenance nor repair parts. Neither wind or solar require expensive pollution emission equipment along with the need to continuously monitor them. Coal and nuclear plants have a problem with how to dispose of the spent fuels as well as the continuous need to purchase more fuel at ever fluctuating market prices.

* Safety is another factor. Before electrical energy comes into homes and businesses the flammable fossil fuels need to be transported by truck, train and pipeline. This after drilling or mining for them. We've seen what can go wrong countless times with extraction of these from our lands and oceans. These are not only quality of life issues, but present very real physical dangers.

* Alternate energy can be made from the sun, wind, left over plant materials, trash and even human waste. In the case of the latter three this would lesson the burden on what to do with them.

* Then there's the cost factor itself to consumers. All the above fossil fuel methods require layer upon layer of expenses before it arrives at the end point. It's simply more cost effective. Even greater savings can be realized by installing supplemental solar or wind generators on site. These not only can save consumers money but in the event of a power outage be relied on for emergency use until full power can be restored.
Naysayers will point out the weakness in being able to store electric. My response would be. There's a huge amount of overhead (extra generators, wire repair crews and alternative wire routes) required of utility companies to keep the current flowing. Current flows nearly at the speed of light. With any breakdown the results are felt down line in a matter of seconds. Generating stations can't store electricity either. Reliability doesn't come cheap.

In order to ally those arguments requires further explanation. For decades the landline telephones continued to operate reliably however long power was out. If one were to visit the central terminals in those days they'd find dozens of batteries nearly identical to those used in today's electric forklifts. They were capable of storing huge amounts of low voltage current. Since telephones operated on direct current they were a perfect solution. One may continue to argue, but they were DC we need AC. Ever hear of an inverter?

Electrical storage batteries have been improving, but for the average homeowner a fork lift battery would be more then adequate. Someday if a homeowner wants to spend more money on something that does a better job that's also a option.

Point Is...
As always money will be the main factor how quickly things come about. Investors seem to be moving on. With it too the fossil fuel industry and electrical suppliers who have the foresight not to be left behind. According to the New York Times even Saudi Arabia is restructuring it's economy away from supplying fuel oil.

I'm hopeful we are starting to see a snowball effect headed in this direction.

This is a good thing all the way around.