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Gold/Mining/Energy : Gold and Silver Juniors, Mid-tiers and Producers -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: jackjc who wrote (25790)	11/18/2006 8:01:53 AM
From: E. Charters	Respond to of 78410

I like wind. (snide commentators take your shots).. at least you can put it in for about 1.5 megabucks a megawatt. or less. The storage can be done in two ways to lose the total power by about 40%. You don't lose that much total power generated. What you lose is the chop conversion factor. The rest is the differential between total power and averaging of overcapacity. You have to build 50% higher than usage. If you need biggie power, say a 50 megawatt plant, will have to build 75 meggies and also a 5 day 75 meggie battery system. That breaks down, with GE 3.8 meggie windmills to 20 mills. Cost is about 75 million. This will generate 50 megs continuous and allow a 20,000 TPD plant. (Iron Ore standard, Griffith, Sherman, Adams.). Battery cost is about .5 mill per megawatt. So add in 40 million bucknicks. 115 million and you have a system. This does not include transformer substation, and ancillaries. Probably gas turbine is cheaper by about 50 million. On the other hand, wind surpasses it in about 5 years, as cost is 1/3 of gas thruput. You can generate wind for about 3.5 cents a KW now, down from 15 C per KW 20 years ago. Wind is now the cheapest energy. If you add in the battery capex in order to get smooth power, it only adds about 1.x cents a KW until payback. You could use DC motors which are more efficient, but you need to design and wind the things and they are larger. It may pay in time. I would estimate that after 9 years, wind to battery to DC motor would pay handsomely. A 20,000 tpd mill can be built for 180 million. To add power at say 135 million with all ancillaries, or to add DC motors is roughly the same price and you have a 20K/D plant for 315 mill. If you can mine 1 gram of gold you have a cash flow of 54 million dollar profit per year (40% of 135 mill) and you have a 6 year payback. Pay packet and power is only 32 million per year. EC<:-}