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Evaluating net benefits of electricity generating technologies
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Abstract
Typically, the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) has been used to compare different electricity generation technologies. As LCOE does not account for intermittency and reliability, the updated net benefits methodology has been used. For various electricity generation technologies, with the use of the updated net benefits methodology, the net benefits of avoided emissions benefits, avoided energy cost benefits, avoided capacity cost benefits, energy costs, capacity costs and other costs at a per MW per year basis have been calculated. The results showed that nuclear generation had the highest net benefits in all of the scenarios considered. The net benefits of solar and wind generation increase when high coal and natural gas fuel price and with technological improvement which would increase the capacity factor and decrease the capital costs. Renewable and nuclear generation sources should play a significant role in the future electricity generation mix.
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