Capacity expansion optimization in a growing nuclear fuel fabrication industry

Optimized schedules for the expansion of fabrication capacity for nuclear fuels can result in substantial savings to the electrical economy. This is evident when the fabrication costs for optimized schedules are compared with conservative schedules based only on near-term demand. A method is presented by which such optimization is achieved through mathematical simulation of numerous logically selected expansion schedules which are all based on the same time-dependent demand data. The schedules are generated by assuming different plant utilization policies and planning horizons, and are compared on a levelized unit cost basis. The schedule yielding the lowest cost over the time period studied is defined as optimum. A parametric analysis is included to show the variation of optimum expansion schedules and unit costs with changes in the various economic parameters.