Show/Hide Toolbars

HOMER Grid 1.10

Navigation: Glossary

Levelized Cost of Energy

Scroll Prev Top Next More

HOMER Logo


HOMER defines the levelized cost of energy (COE) as the average cost per kWh of useful electrical energy produced by the system.

Type:

Output Variable

Units:

$/kWh

Symbol:

COE

To calculate the COE, HOMER divides the annualized cost of producing electricity (the total annualized cost minus the cost of serving the thermal load) by the total electric load served, using the following equation:

equations_coe

where:


 

 

Cann,tot

= total annualized cost of the system [$/yr]

 

cboiler

= boiler marginal cost [$/kWh]

 

Hserved

= total thermal load served [kWh/yr]

 

Eserved

= total electrical load served [kWh/yr]

The second term in the numerator is the portion of the annualized cost that results from serving the thermal load. In systems, such as wind or PV, that do not serve a thermal load (Hthermal=0), this term is zero.

The COE is a convenient metric with which to compare systems, but HOMER does not rank systems based on COE.

See also

Annualized Cost

Total Annualized Cost

The Homer Support site has a searchable knowledgebase and additional support options. HOMER Online contains the latest information on model updates, as well as sample files, resource data, and contact information.UL LLC © 2022