Credit Suisse: Geothermal as least expensive
A new equity research report that I just received makes a very interesting reading. Unfortunately I cannot find it online, hence no possible download. But in short, it is a great advertisement for geothermal power. The document, an Equity Research piece on “Alternative Energy” (from January 28, 2009) is looking into ..Read more
A new equity research report that I just received makes a very interesting reading. Unfortunately I cannot find it online, hence no possible download. But in short, it is a great advertisement for geothermal power. The document, an Equity Research piece on “Alternative Energy” (from January 28, 2009) is looking into the “How much does it cost?” and compares the costs of alternative energy technologies. The cost per MWh is compared and the order is: US$ 153 for solar crystalline, solar thermal at $ 90 per MWh compared to nuclear power at $ 62 and coal at $55, natural gas at $52 per MWh. The least expensive are wind at $ 43 and geothermal power at $36 per MWh. Credit Suisse is providing an “apples to apples”-comparison in full of the cost of energy (levelized cost of electricity, LCOE) considering:
- upfront capital investments,
- the ongoing operating expenses,
- the life of the asset,
- all fuel costs, and
- the capacity utilization rate (or actual average output of power).