Firm Power on Earth: the Real Competition
What does space solar power compete with, and what would it need to cost?
Chapter summary
firm, low-carbon power, available around the clock.
Key takeaways
- 1
In the United States in 2025, Lazard put unsubsidised new nuclear at $141–251 per MWh, gas combined cycle at $48–109 per MWh (with carbon emissions), and solar or wind firmed with backup at up to about $164 per MWh in some regions.
- 2
Geothermal, hydro and long-duration storage add further options.
- 3
SBSP at Setcoin's reference cost of about $357/MWh is above all of them; at about $95/MWh with $200/kg launch it would compete with new nuclear and firmed renewables; at about $50/MWh with advanced designs it would undercut most firm options.
Keep reading with Space access
This chapter (2 exhibits, 374 words) is part of Space & aerospace. Space access opens every chapter of all 11 Space reports, with the interactive models, Excel downloads, Ask and named Atlas records.
- Global Market Analysis: Deep Space Economy
- Space-Based Datacenters: Feasibility Study
- Commercial Space Stations: Feasibility Study
- Defence Space and Missile Defence: Golden Dome and the SDA Architecture
- Launch After Starship: Prices, Capacity and European Sovereign Launch, 2026–2035
- Satellites to Phones: Direct-to-Device Connectivity, Spectrum and Economics, 2026–2035
- Space Supply Chain Bottlenecks: Components, Minerals and Capacity, 2026–2030
- Lunar, Cislunar and Settlement Economics: What the Moon Costs and Who Pays, 2026–2060
- Earth Observation and AI Analytics: What a Square Kilometre Is Worth and Who Captures It, 2026–2035
- In-Space Manufacturing and Microgravity Biotech: Products, Platforms and Economics, 2026–2035
- Space-Based Solar Power: Physics, Costs and the Path to Firm Power from Orbit, 2026–2050
€199 a month or €1,490 a year per sector, after a 7-day free trial. Cancel any time. Need several sectors? All sectors: €999 a month.
Check the live record Space Contracts & Tender Radar · Space Claim Check (free)
Ask about this chapter
Answers drawn from every Setcoin report and the live Atlas. Each statement links to the passage behind it.
Ask is included with every subscription
Cited answers across every report and the Atlas, with follow-up questions and a hand-off to the opportunity finder.
Research for professional investors. Not investment advice, and not an offer of any security or fund interest.