An international comparison of electricity generation costs

A comparison of electricity generation costs in different countries is presented. The difficulties in carrying out such a comparison are outlined, as well as the different approaches to determine the costs. Factors contributing to the variations in capital costs between countries are discussed, along with fuel costs. The overall levellised generation costs, including all stages of the fuel cycle and all investment and long term plant costs, for different countries, are given in tabular form. The table shows that nuclear energy has a considerable advantage over energy derived from coal in all countries except the USA. (U.K.)