Is clean energy actually cheaper than fossil fuels now?

What the data shows

The question is settled. According to Lazard's 2024 Levelized Cost of Energy analysis, the standard benchmark the power industry uses, new utility-scale solar costs about 29 to 92 dollars per megawatt-hour and onshore wind costs about 27 to 73 dollars.^[1] A new natural gas combined-cycle plant, by comparison, runs around 76 dollars.^[1] These are unsubsidized figures. The playing field is level, and clean energy wins.

This is not a new development. Lazard has now ranked wind and solar as the cheapest new-build electricity for roughly a decade running.^[1] The cost advantage has held across administrations, across states, across market conditions. The reason is simple: the fuel is free. There is no coal to mine, no gas to pipe in, no price spike when global markets tighten. The sun and wind do not send an invoice.

What it means for Florida

Florida gets about three-quarters of its electricity from burning natural gas.^[3] Nearly all of that gas is piped in from out of state, so when gas prices spike, Floridians' bills spike with them. The state has no control over those swings. Adding more home-grown solar diversifies the mix and shields ratepayers from that volatility.^[3]

Solar provides only about 11 percent of Florida's electricity today, even though the state ranks third nationally in installed capacity.^[4] For a state called the Sunshine State, that is leaving money on the table. The runway is enormous. The economics are proven. The question is whether state leaders will get out of the way and let the market do what the math already shows it wants to do.

Why the market is shifting

Utilities and investors follow the numbers. Of the 62.8 gigawatts of new generating capacity planned for 2024, solar accounted for 58 percent and battery storage 23 percent, together 81 percent of the total.^[2] Planned new natural gas capacity was just 2.5 gigawatts, the least in 25 years.^[2] Clean energy is no longer a niche. It is the mainstream choice for new power.

Battery storage has solved the intermittency problem that used to be the main argument against solar. Solar plants now pair with batteries that store extra power generated during the day to use after the sun sets. In 2024, battery additions hit records, and the combination of solar-plus-storage lets clean power serve demand around the clock.^[2] Florida Power and Light has been pairing storage with its solar plants since 2018.^[2] The technology works. The economics work. The grid stays reliable.

The bigger picture

Clean energy and transportation investment in the United States reached a record 272 billion dollars in 2024, a 16 percent jump over the prior year.^[5] From mid-2022 through 2024, 289 billion dollars went into building clean manufacturing and electricity facilities.^[5] Notably, 77 percent of that spending landed in Republican-held congressional districts.^[5] This is not a partisan issue. Lower bills, local jobs, and energy independence appeal to voters of every stripe.

The solar industry employed about 280,000 workers in 2024, more than three times as many as the coal industry.^[6] In Florida, the solar sector supports more than 14,000 jobs across roughly 473 companies, making it the nation's second-largest solar employer behind only California.^[7] These are local jobs in installation, electrical work, construction, sales, and operations that cannot be shipped overseas. Solar has also drawn over 33 billion dollars in investment into Florida.^[7]

What this means for families

Energy costs fall hardest on low-income households. Roughly two-thirds of low-income U.S. families face a high energy burden, spending more than 6 percent of their income on energy, nearly three times the rate of the average household.^[8] In a hot state like Florida, where summer cooling drives up consumption, that burden is especially heavy. Cheaper, home-grown clean power and energy efficiency directly ease the squeeze.

The bills hitting Floridians hardest right now are tied to fossil-fuel costs and to utility rate hikes. When the Florida Public Service Commission approved Florida Power and Light's 2025 rate settlement, it locked in a 10.95 percent guaranteed return on equity, higher than the 10.6 percent the state's consumer advocate recommended.^[9] That guaranteed profit is built into the rates customers pay. Adding more clean energy to the mix creates more competition and more options for families to lower their own bills.

The path forward

David Jolly's position is that Florida leaders should unleash clean and renewable energy across the Sunshine State and require greater integration of clean energy technologies into public utilities. The argument is that environmentally sound energy is good stewardship, protects the tourist and environmental economy that Florida depends on, and can drive down utility costs for consumers.^[4]

The economics are not in dispute. The technology is proven. The market has already decided. The question is whether state leaders will follow the data or continue to protect an energy model that sends billions of Florida dollars out of state every year for imported natural gas. Lead with your heart because it is the right thing. Lead with your head because it makes good economic sense.