Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Table 1.2
ADJUSTED LEVELIZED COSTS FOR
THE UNITED STATES
Adjusted LCOE,
US ¢/kWh ($2007)
Technology
Onshore wind
6.0
Geothermal
7.1
Hydroelectric
7.8
Landill gas
10.8
Biomass (combustion)
13.6
Advanced nuclear
16.0
Advanced gas and oil combined cycle (AGOCC)
20.2
AGOCC with carbon capture
24.8
Integrated gasiication combined cycle (IGCC)
25.9
Scrubbed coal
26.3
IGCC with carbon capture
27.9
Solar photovoltaic
39.9
Source
: Sovacool (2008).
operational lifetime of a given electricity technology, Sovacool argues that all
environmental costs and subsidies associated with a given technology should
be also added to the cost estimate, because these relect real costs that taxpay-
ers bear. Table 1.2 reproduces Sovacool's estimates on the impact that inter-
nalizing these external costs has on electricity source cost proiles.
44
As Table 1.2 illustrates, based on Sovacool's estimates for electricity
costs in the United States, wind power, geothermal power, and hydroelec-
tric power emerge as decisively the most economical when all of the exter-
nal costs are internalized. It should be noted that any such comparison of
electricity costs comes with inherent biases that inluence the results. For
example, the data presented in Table 1.2 stems from a levelized estimate
that is contingent on a host of assumptions made regarding costs associ-
ated with infrastructure, fuel, operation and maintenance, downtime costs,
inancing, and decommissioning. Furthermore, the adjustments made to
the levelized data is appurtenant to assumptions made regarding the cost
of dominant negative externalities such as CO
2
emissions or health costs
associated with pollutants coming from electricity generation.
Accordingly, for the purposes of this chapter, the data presented in
Figure 1.8 or Table 1.2 is not intended to support deinitive quantitative
proclamations regarding the comparative cost of electricity technologies;
rather, it is intended to lend general support to the assertion that commer-
cially viable alternative electricity generation technology is available today.
