Economic evaluation criteria for project decisions: Finding the justified investment volume for additional output and efficiency

摘要

All power plant projects require an evaluation of both technical feasibility and economic benefits. The economic assessment of different options for a new power plant leads to the same considerations as upgrades or enhancements on existing plants, always coming down to a simple question: What is improved performance worth? In other words: to what extent can technical benefits justify increased investment that derive from: additional capacity (+ 1 MW), more availability (+100 OH), higher efficiency (+1%), shorter project lead time (-1 month), extended life time (+1 yr) or others.