Quote:
Originally Posted by sendler
The Topaz solar farm is doing 1301 GWh per year on 25km^2 of land and cost $2.4B.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topaz_Solar_Farm
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If it really were to try to replace anything it would need storage since it operates at 24.4% of rated capacity. 6Gwh of batteries doesn't really get you through the night occasionally. $200/kWh.$1.5B. And the batteries will last how long? And can't cover a single cloudy day without a gas plant or something else.
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A single Gen3+ Westinghouse AP1000 Reactor for $7B will make this much power in 50 days on 1km of land.
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AP1000 Pressurized Water Reactor | Westinghouse Nuclear
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Day, night, rain, shine. 0 carbon. And there are better designs just waiting to be built if we let them. The World needs 30 TeraWatts all electric by 2200 when the oil runs out. |
If you are doing this sort of calculation, it's important to consider lifespan too. What's the lifespan on that AP1000? Many Nuclear plants last 50-70 years
Wind turbines average lifespan is only about 20-25years. Solar panels can last 30 years or more, but their efficiency gradually degrades over time and it is often economically prudent to replace them before then.