Page 101 - Piston Engine-Based Power Plants

92 Piston Engine-Based Power Plants

THE LEVELIZED COST OF ELECTRICITY

Figures for the LCOE from reciprocating engines are also scarce.
However Lazard has recently published some estimates for the cost in
2
the United States. The figures are for reciprocating engines used for
distributed generation. The analysis found that the LCOE for a diesel
reciprocating engine was between $212/MWh and $281/MWh. The
comparable cost for a natural gas reciprocating engine was from $68/
MWh to $101/MWh. In both cases the lower figure is for a unit used
for base-load generation while the higher is for backup or intermittent
use with a 10% duty cycle. The figures suggest that a natural gas
engine is one of the cheapest sources of electricity based on fossil fuel.
However the low cost of electricity relies substantially on the low cost
of natural gas in the United States. Costs elsewhere are likely to be
higher.

2 Lazard’s Levelized Cost of Energy Analysis Version 10.0, December 2016.