1	Economics of Electric Generation Technologies Eric Blake The Prime Group LLC
2	Fuels Used to Generate Electricity Coal Natural Gas Nuclear Oil Hydro Renewable Sources (Wind, Solar, Geothermal, Biomass)
3	Fuel Types
4	What’s Being Constructed Planned Generation Additions in 2004 Natural Gas – 23,166 MW (97.0%) Biomass – 558 MW (2.3%) Coal – 105 MW (0.4%) Geothermal – 21 MW (0.1%) Oil – 17 MW (0.1%) Hydro – 3 MW (0.0%) Wind – 1 MW (0.0%) Other – 0 MW (0.0%)
5	Coal-Fired Generation vs. Conventional Gas Combustion Turbine Conventional Coal Capacity Cost (~$1,200/kW) Fixed O&M (~$23/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.013/kWh) Conventional CT Capacity Cost (~$350/kW) Fixed O&M (~$6/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.070/kWh)
6	Load Duration Curve
7	CT versus Coal
8	CT Operation
9	Combustion Turbine Technology
10	Combined Cycle Technology
11	Combined Cycle CT vs. Conventional Gas Combustion Turbine Combined Cycle Capacity Cost (~$550/kW) Fixed O&M (~$16/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.046/kWh) Conventional CT Capacity Cost (~$350/kW) Fixed O&M (~$6/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.070/kWh)
12	Annual Costs
13	Coal-Fired Generation vs. Fuel Cells Conventional Coal Capacity Cost (~$1,200/kW) Fixed O&M (~$23/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.013/kWh) Fuel Cells Capacity Cost ($2,000 - $5,000/kW) Fixed O&M (~$15/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.035/kWh)
14	Fuel Cells Technology
15	Fuel Cell Electric Generation
16	Fuel Cells versus Coal
17	The Fuel Cell Horizon The Good News – the capital cost of a fuel cell generating set is projected to decrease (projected to drop to as low as $1,000 to $1,500/kW in the next 10 to 20 years) The Bad News – at this cost, fuel cells still won’t be competitive with coal-fired generation
18	Wind Generation Large Turbines (~1,000 MW) ~$1,000/kW Require 13 MPH (6 m/s) average wind speeds Small Turbines (~50 kW) $2,000 to $6,000/kW Require 9 MPH (4 m/s) average wind speeds
19	Coal-Fired Generation vs. Wind Generation Conventional Coal Capacity Cost (~$1,200/kW) Fixed O&M (~$23/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.013/kWh) Wind Turbine Capacity Cost (~$1,000/kW) Fixed O&M (~$26/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.000/kWh)
20	Wind versus Coal
21	Prospects for Wind Generation Advantages Low cost per kWh Declining capacity cost Environmentally friendly (expect for those birds) Disadvantages Availability dependent on wind (might not be available during peak conditions) Expect availability to be <40% Must be integrated with other resources
22	Photovoltaic Technology Relies on semi-conductor technologies Silicon-based wafers (e.g., single crystal, multi-crystalline, amorphous) Thin-Film semi-conductors (experimental) Organic film semi-conductors (experimental) Currently has high capacity cost, but projected to decline May be cost effective in remote areas (e.g., livestock pumps)
23	Coal-Fired Generation vs. Photovoltaic Cells Conventional Coal Capacity Cost (~$1,200/kW) Fixed O&M (~$23/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.013/kWh) Photo Cells Capacity Cost (~$4,000/kW) Fixed O&M (~$10/kW/Yr) Variable Cost (~$0.000/kWh)
24	Photovoltaic versus Coal
25	Prospects for Photovoltaic Cells Advantages Renewable energy Likely to be available during peak summer conditions Declining capacity cost Disadvantages Currently has high capacity cost Availability dependent on sunlight Unknown Asset Service Life