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Capacity Utilization

Capacity Utilization

Capacity Utilization

(OP)
What can be said about a generator capacity utilization rate of 30% as a national average statistic.  Would it be below average, average, or above?  Are there typical numbers to expect.

**********************
"Pumping accounts for 20% of the world's energy used by electric motors and 25-50% of the total electrical energy usage in certain industrial facilities."-DOE statistic (Note: Make that 99% for pipeline companies) http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com/

RE: Capacity Utilization

It depends.  Is it a base load plant?  In which case 30% would be terrible.  Is it a peaker plant?  In which case 30% is a plant being pounded to death.  A load following plant? Maybe a reasonable utilization.

RE: Capacity Utilization

If you are talking about one generator compared to average of all generators of a similar type, it is totally dependent on the type of machine.  For a coal-fired or nuclear plant 30% would be low.

If you're talking about wind turbines, 30% would probably put it in the Guinness Book of World Records.   

David Castor
www.cvoes.com

RE: Capacity Utilization

(OP)
Thanks.
You're right.  Wind is 22%.

Its a national average consisting all types of total 100 GW,
as follows,

% Total Type   Cap.MW  Cap.Utilized
18% Hydro    16657  16%
 8% Nuclear      7716  78%
12% Coal Fired    11359  35%
 4% Fuel/gas    3927    6%
24% Comb Cyc    22243  40%
19% Wind        17739  22%
14% Other       13182  37%

100% TOTAL    92823  30%
 

**********************
"Pumping accounts for 20% of the world's energy used by electric motors and 25-50% of the total electrical energy usage in certain industrial facilities."-DOE statistic (Note: Make that 99% for pipeline companies) http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com/

RE: Capacity Utilization

35% for coal-fired seems low.  I'm used to see these units well over 50%, unless they are intentionally under-utilized.  

22% for wind is extremely high.  Maybe unbelievably high.  

David Castor
www.cvoes.com

RE: Capacity Utilization

And maybe we should agree on a definition of "utilization rate" for the purpose of the discussion.

Alan

RE: Capacity Utilization

See http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epa/epata6.html for capacity factors in USA.

In 2007
Nuclear 91.8%
Coal 73.6%
Hydro  36.3%
Other Renewables 40%

Wind is not broken out, but EIA says wind is lower than other "Other Renewables".  http://lightbucket.wordpress.com/2008/03/13/the-capacity-factor-of-wind-power/ has a table of wind energy capacity factors worldwide with an average of about 20%.

Capacity factor: The ratio of the electrical energy produced by a generating unit for the period of time considered to the electrical energy that could have been produced at continuous full power operation during the same period.

 

RE: Capacity Utilization

(OP)
Thanks everybody.

The Cap Utilization numbers I calculated looked pretty low, but I had no gage to compare stats.  These are good.  

I forgot the EIA has data for subjects other than petroleum use.  Exactly what I needed.

That lightbucket link looks like a good read too.

**********************
"Pumping accounts for 20% of the world's energy used by electric motors and 25-50% of the total electrical energy usage in certain industrial facilities."-DOE statistic (Note: Make that 99% for pipeline companies) http://virtualpipeline.spaces.live.com/

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