4. Cost analysis

The cost data available are not very accurate or reliable. This is due to the fact that most projects are generally at the R&D, pilot or, at best, demonstration stage. Commercial-scale power plants can be counted on the fingers of one hand, and are in any case the first examples of systems that need to be developed once the integration of all components and systems, even if individually mature, has been validated. Without going into the details of the LCOE (Levelized Cost Of Electricity) method for calculating the average discounted cost over the lifetime of the plant, cost estimates are variable and subject to a high degree of inaccuracy of at least 30%.

By way of illustration, in the power plant sector, capture costs depend essentially on the following factors:

• the choice of the type of capture process among...