12000 barrels per year at $100 per barrel, 1,200,000. Cost to save 12000 barrels per year with hybrid drive, 8.8 million (plus 17.1 million initial cost).
Can someone explain the economic benefit of this move?
Actually, his point is pretty valid. How much does the satellite system cost per unit energy delivered? How does it affect my cost per kw-hr? If it's more than a coal system's current cost, shelve it and come up with something more practical until the coal price increases enough to make it worthwhile.
For example, let's say the mass of the satellite is 1000kg and that the price quoted from this site is for LEO only, which is about 40% the cost (guessed from spacex's maximum limits ratio from LEO to GTO) of a geosynchronous orbit for a rough estimate of 7170 USD per KG to GEO. Say 7.2m USD + cost of the satellite, which I'll baselessly assume costs 2.8 million to make the math easy.
I pay 9.5 cents per kw-hr. At that rate, once this bird is in orbit, it'll generate about 19k USD per hour, ignoring conversion and line losses, administration, maintenance, etc. It'll pay for itself in 526 hours of operation. Even at 10 times the cost and merely 10% efficiency, it pays for itself in 6.0 years.
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Virgin's FAQ says 200000 is only for the first 100 and then scaling down between 100 and 175K for the remainder of the first 1000 and 20k thereafter.
12000 barrels per year at $100 per barrel, 1,200,000. Cost to save 12000 barrels per year with hybrid drive, 8.8 million (plus 17.1 million initial cost). Can someone explain the economic benefit of this move?
Actually, his point is pretty valid. How much does the satellite system cost per unit energy delivered? How does it affect my cost per kw-hr? If it's more than a coal system's current cost, shelve it and come up with something more practical until the coal price increases enough to make it worthwhile.
For example, let's say the mass of the satellite is 1000kg and that the price quoted from this site is for LEO only, which is about 40% the cost (guessed from spacex's maximum limits ratio from LEO to GTO) of a geosynchronous orbit for a rough estimate of 7170 USD per KG to GEO. Say 7.2m USD + cost of the satellite, which I'll baselessly assume costs 2.8 million to make the math easy.
I pay 9.5 cents per kw-hr. At that rate, once this bird is in orbit, it'll generate about 19k USD per hour, ignoring conversion and line losses, administration, maintenance, etc. It'll pay for itself in 526 hours of operation. Even at 10 times the cost and merely 10% efficiency, it pays for itself in 6.0 years.
Seems OK to me.