Process

Economics of a Power Plant:
Your role is to assess the economic feasibility of the two types of power plants. We want to make the best choice for our town. For example, we would not want a nuclear power plant in town if down the line the technology would be too expensive compared to electricity generated by coal. We also don’t want any short-term economic crises in town because of the facility. While concerns about the environment are important, there are many in town that are really concerned about the money side of the story.

Nulcear plant

Economics Questions:

1. What are the differences between each of these costs for each type of power plant?:

(a) Capital (initial) costs
(b) Operating and maintenance costs
(c) Fuel costs

NOTE: When making comparisons of cost, be sure the numbers you are looking at are in the same units (i.e., cents/kW hr is not the same as dollars/MW hr). You might need to convert units yourself.

2. What is the cost to the consumer of the electricity generated by nuclear and coal power plants? Which is cheaper? Are there controlling factors that could alter the cost to citizens?

3. Why might fuel costs be higher for coal than nuclear? In your judgment, what should happen in the future?

4. According to the various sources, how do the economic futures of nuclear and coal compare economically to the other types of electrical power generation that are on the market? Which sites' information are you cautious of and why?

5. Are there other economic concerns on a local level? What sort of demands should the town make of the prospective power company to ease these local economic burdens?

6. What if there is a nuclear accident? Will the government help the people of the area monetarily? Describe how the Price-Anderson Act works and how it would be beneficial for our town should we "go nuclear".

7. Overall, based on the information provided, which is the most effective way to go? Write a few sentences justifying your position.

8. Your presentation should include at least 2 charts, tables, or graphics to illustrate your position. You should make these charts YOURSELF in Word or Excel using economic data of your choosing. See the note above about units.

http://nuclear.gov/ (Government web site)
http://www.nucleartourist.com/ (Professional nuclear consultant’s informational web site).
http://www.uic.com.au/ #1 (Uranium Information Center- Australian Uranium Assoc.)
http://www.uic.com.au/ #2 (Uranium Information Center- Australian Uranium Assoc.)
http://www.eia.doe.gov/ (Government web site)
http://www.nytimes.com/ (NY Times article)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ (Washington Post Article)
http://www.businessweek.com/ (Business Week Article)
http://www.citizen.org/ (Non-profit organization)*
http://www.iaea.org/ (International Atomic Energy Agency)*

* These files are PDF's and may take a few moments to load.

Click here for a printable version of the questions above.

Summary information Sheet

If you are confused about other aspects of nuclear power as you read these articles about economics? You might want to look at some of the links on the other roles' sites or you might want to read through this:

How Stuff Works- Nuclear Power

Coal Plant Basics