4 Economic Considerations and Drivers

The cooling systems at steam-electric power plants represent an important element of the total plant cost of electricity due to capital costs, operating costs, and environmental compliance. The choice of cooling system has a significant effect on plant economics because of the effect on plant efficiency and capacity, and this choice can be affected by climate and hydrology. For example, in some cases a cooling tower can operate more efficiently than a once-through system if water intake temperatures are high, and in other cases the opposite can be true.