Break-even Price Research Articles

Including sub-surface uncertainties in CCS hub investment decision making – a case history

Large-scale carbon capture and storage (CCS) hub investments require design choices regarding sizing (in Mt-CO2/year) and project build-out phasing. Investments in capture and transport represent the majority of overall project capex, with the ‘size’ of that infrastructure ideally optimised to capture and deliver steady rates over the asset lifetime. However, there is a risk that the sub-surface injection (i.e. storage) rate cannot be sustained at the specified capture rate. The investment risk in sizing major capture and transport equipment therefore lies in the uncertainty surrounding future dynamic performance of the storage site(s). This paper builds on a previous investigation for the Surat Basin, examining the role that sub-surface uncertainties play in this hub- sizing risk. Articulating the value of investment in additional appraisal information, shows that the acquisition of critical, uncertainty-defining data can reduce final investment risk in capture and transport, helping to ‘right size’ the hub build. Screening-stage modelling of technical and economic uncertainty plays a crucial role, characterised with a target unit technical cost (UTC) that represents the life-cycle, constant real-terms, carbon price ($/t) required for storage that would result in a break-even economic development. The presence of pre-development uncertainties in long-term dynamic performance, and the need for appraisal to reduce that uncertainty, effectively increase the required break-even storage price. Alternatively, ignoring that uncertainty could lead to under-performance of the storage resource (inability to sequester at the capture design-rates) and significant over-investment in capture and transport infrastructure, increasing the overall cost of CO2 sequestration.

STRATEGI PEMASARAN DAUN TALAS BENENG (STUDI KASUS KELOMPOK TANI TALAS DI KECAMATAN JUMO)

22 Farmer groups in Jumo District, Temanggung Regency are currently shifting to beneng taro cultivation, collectors and buyers who come to receive the best quality dried taro leaves at a price of IDR 20,000 (twenty thousand rupiah). One farmer group consists of 20 - 30 taro farmers with a total garden area of ​​14 hectares. Taro belongs to the tuber family, tubers, stems and leaves can be processed into food, medicine and the leaves can be used as a substitute for tobacco leaves as raw material for cigarettes. The obstacle experienced by farmers in beneng taro cultivation is in determining the selling price, especially for mass sales, in this case the taro leaf harvest can be picked once every three months and can be planned every two weeks, due to the nature of taro which grows and develops throughout the year and not too affected by the season, the farmers in Jumo District, Temanggung Regency make taro as an alternative when the tobacco plant is not in the growing season. In this case the author does community service in helping to determine the selling price and bring together buyers/exporters who receive crops with a contract quantity of 8 tons/month. Of course there were many obstacles at the beginning of this service, for this reason, initially a marketing analysis was carried out, followed by cultivation guidance, and standard equipment/machines for processing taro leaves so that the best quality produced was sold at better prices, access to exporters or even overseas buyers was The main objective of this study, while the methodology used in this study is to use descriptive analysis with the conclusion that the cost of goods manufactured and the break-even price are the main factors in determining the selling price and determining the profits of all members of the taro beneng farmer group.

Economic evaluation of a power-to-hydrogen system providing frequency regulation reserves: a case study of Denmark

Operating costs are dominant in the hydrogen production of a power-to-hydrogen system. An optimal operational strategy or bidding framework is effective in reducing these costs. However, it is still found that the production cost of hydrogen is high. As the electrolysis unit is characterized by high flexibility, providing ancillary service to the grid becomes a potential pathway for revenue stacking. Recent research has demonstrated the feasibility of providing such a service, but the related economics have not been well evaluated. In this work, we propose a comprehensive operation model to enable participation in the day-head, balancing and reserve markets. Three types of reserves are considered by using different operational constraints. Based on the proposed operation framework, we assess the economic performance of a power-to-hydrogen system in Denmark using plentiful actual market data. The results reveal that providing frequency containment reserve and automatic frequency restoration reserve efficiently raises the operational contribution margins. In parallel, by investing in the cash flows, net present value, and break-even hydrogen prices, we conclude that providing reserves makes the power-to-hydrogen project more profitable in the studied period and region.

Hybrid system of hydrogen generation by water electrolysis and methane partial oxidation

Hydrogen technology is one of the promising solutions to the problems of decentralization and reducing the carbon intensity of the energy sector. This is true even despite the current technological, economic and political barriers to its large-scale use. This paper proposes a concept of combining two technologies for producing hydrogen - partial oxidation of methane with oxygen and water electrolysis, a byproduct of which is oxygen. The analysis and evaluation of the proposed scheme showed that: 1) the synergy of water electrolysis and methane partial oxidation technologies allows the production of hydrogen with a low carbon footprint; 2) the hybrid system allows optimizing electricity and natural gas consumption using energy demand management technologies; 3) the technology synergy allows using excess thermal energy released during methane partial oxidation to increase the electrolysis temperature and its efficiency; 4) it was found that LCOH of the proposed system is 4.66 USD/kg that meets the average estimates in existing studies. At the same time, breakeven price of the project is 9.658 USD/kg H2, which is too high to be competitive without state support.

A realistic analysis of hydrogen production based on flare gas considering life cycle assessment

Among the different methods for flare gas recovery, the comprehensive evaluation of hydrogen production has yet to be studied. The techno-economic evaluation and life cycle assessment of using flare gas to produce hydrogen are performed in this study. The Aspen HYSYS software is used to simulate the different units of hydrogen production, and the economic assessment is performed to calculate the hydrogen production expenditures. The results illustrated that the mass flow rate and the capacity of the hydrogen production plant are 117600 kg/h and 4856.4 MW, respectively. The obtained results demonstrate that the hydrogen production costs can be considered reasonable using flare gas with a low price and large flow rate. In this regard, the breakeven price of hydrogen is US$ 0.27, and the share of Capital expenditure in hydrogen production cost is 55.4%, as well. Moreover, the life cycle assessment (LCA) of hydrogen production has been conducted to evaluate the environmental effects of hydrogen production. Thanks to the novel CO2 capturing process considered in this study, GHG and CO2 productions have been reduced, respectively, by 59 and 63 percent, demonstrating the necessity of using the CO2 capturing process.

Economic Performance Indicators for a Geothermal Aquatic Center in Victoria, Australia

The Gippsland Regional Aquatic Centre (GRAC) opened in the town of Traralgon, Victoria, Australia early in 2021. The GRAC utilizes a geothermal energy heating system as an alternative to conventional natural gas furnaces. We have examined 12 full months of heat production from the geothermal system of the GRAC and compared its economic performance against equivalent heat production by natural gas. The geothermal system—the first of its kind in Victoria—operated at >95% availability over its first year of operation. Our economic assessment indicates that the breakeven price for the geothermal energy is about 35% the equivalent price of natural gas and the payback period for the geothermal system is about five years. The results justify the initial capital outlay by Latrobe City Council and are likely to stimulate further development of geothermal heat systems in the region.

Techno-Economic Analysis of Interesterification for Biodiesel Production

Interesterification is an alternative reaction for the production of fatty acid alkyl esters from triglycerides, a pathway that avoids unwanted byproduct formation. In this work, the technical and economic feasibility of soybean oil interesterification for biodiesel production on a commercial scale is assessed. The interesterification kinetics of triolein (model soybean oil) and methyl acetate using ferric sulfate as a heterogeneous acid catalyst are experimentally determined, and the results are used to parameterize a kinetic model. Process simulations are developed using Aspen Plus V11 for acid and alkaline heterogeneously catalyzed interesterification plants at varying production rates and methyl acetate-to-oil molar ratios (MAOMRs). At all production capacities and MAOMRs tested, the acid-catalyzed processes are found to have more favorable process energy consumption and profitability metrics compared to the alkaline-catalyzed processes. The most economically promising design operates at a production capacity of 30,000 metric tons/yr and an MAOMR of 10:1 with a net present value of $34 million after 20 years and a biodiesel breakeven price of $0.78/kg. This case has a process energy demand of 35,000 MJ/h, resulting in a process energy ratio of 0.25. This work indicates that interesterification shows commercial viability and is a promising alternative to transesterification for biodiesel production.

Influence of system boundary conditions on the life cycle cost and carbon emissions of CO2 transport

One of the critical stages in carbon capture and storage (CCS) is the transport of CO2 from the point of capture to the storage site. Besides pipeline transport, the present proposition of marine CO2 transport is to make use of vessels that transport chemicals of similar physical properties to CO2 such as liquefied propane gas (LPG) and liquefied natural gas. Through a life cycle analysis, this study examines the influence of system boundary conditions on the total cost and benefits of CO2 transport using a reference LPG tanker. While the levelized cost of transport (i.e. shipping) can be intuitively obtained at 31.65–47.05$/t when LPG and CO2 are assumed to be transported as cargos between two fixed ports, the total system-level CO2 emission is contentious when the greater “interconnected” systems including LPG and a fictitious power plant life cycle are considered. Base on the analysis of the proposed most reasonable boundary condition, a break-even carbon price is further examined and found to be ranging from 39.37 to 22.32$/t-CO2. While the boundary conditions can influence the break-even price of CO2, such variations and the associated change in boundary conditions can be used to facilitate policy debate on the right carbon price for international shipping.

Green hydrogen production for oil refining – Finnish case

This study investigates the production of green hydrogen for use in oil refining, as specified in the draft of European union delegated act published in May 2022. The European union plans to set strict requirements of additionality and reporting regarding the criteria of renewable electricity used in hydrogen production. Alkaline electrolyzer, proton exchange membrane electrolyzer and solid oxide electrolyzer are evaluated in various scenarios supplied by wind power: power purchase agreement-based scenarios and wind power investment-based scenarios. In power purchase agreement-based scenarios baseload and pay as produced power purchase agreements (with and without electricity storage) are assessed. According to results, the use of 600 MW compressed air energy storage could reduce the dependency on the grid by 7% but increase the cost of green hydrogen significantly. Investment-based scenarios produce green hydrogen with a lower operation cost, but higher break-even price compared to power purchase agreement-based scenarios. The cheapest green hydrogen can be achieved by alkaline electrolyzer with baseload power purchase agreement. Direct ownership of wind power is outside the operation of oil refining industry, thus power purchase agreements contracting is more likely to realize.

Water Use Efficiency and Economic Evaluation of the Hydroponic versus Conventional Cultivation Systems for Green Fodder Production in Saudi Arabia

The current study is aimed to assess water use efficiency and evaluate economic viability of hydroponic and conventional production of barley green fodder by keeping in view the water scarcity challenges in Saudi Arabia. A hydroponic system and open field experimental plot was used to evaluate the water use efficiency for different irrigation regimes. Economic indicators for both production systems are estimated and compared to accomplish economic assessment. Estimated indicators include returns from inputs and net profit; benefit-cost ratio; break-even levels of prices, production, and yield; returns over variable cost; and returns on investment. Results indicated that the yield of barley green fodder produced under hydroponic conditions overtopped the yield under conventional cultivation. Under hydroponic and conventional conditions, WUE was decreased with increasing the harvesting date. However, WUE for the hydroponic technique was much higher than the conventional one. The returns and net profits supported the conventional cultivation methods, where lower dry matter content coupled with higher fixed and variable costs incurred by the hydroponic technique outweighed returns leading to economic loss. Cost-benefit ratios, returns over investment, and break-even prices and yield suggested that growing barley fodder under the hydroponic technique is economically not suitable for small-scale farming. However, regarding water conservation, hydroponic barley cultivation showed superiority over conventional field cultivation. Further research on the adoption of hydroponic fodder cultivation is highly recommended for water-scarce arid regions, such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Comparative analysis of the profitability of the tossa and kenaf seed cultivation at contact growers’ level in selected areas of Bangladesh

This study compared the profitability of tossa and kenaf seed cultivation based on the 2021 seed-growing season in two locations: Rangpur and Jashore using the tossa variety BJRI Tossa Pat 8 and Rangpur and Kishoreganj using the kenaf variety HC-95. Data analysis methods included descriptive statistics, break-even analysis and cost-benefit analysis. The expensive factors in growing tossa and kenaf seeds were labor costs, followed by land use, machinery, fertilizers, and seed. While the cost of labor (58.38%) and fertilizers (8.74%) were higher for tossa seed, the cost of seed (4.85%) for kenaf seed cultivation was higher as a percentage of the total cost. The highest tossa and kenaf seed yields were 722 kgha-1 and 798 kgha-1, respectively, in Jashore and Kishoreganj. Average break-even price for kenaf seed was Tk. 130 kg-1, which was less expensive than tossa seed (Tk. 181 kg-1). When compared to kenaf (341 kgha-1), average break-even quantity of tossa seed was higher (679 kgha-1). The average benefit cost ratio was found higher in the kenaf seed crop, as compared to the tossa seed crop in respect of total cost, variable cost, and cash cost. According to this finding, growing kenaf as seed crop can be profitable for farmers.

A fully integrated reservoir/pipeline network model and its application on the evaluation of subsea water separation performance

Subsea water separation (SSWS) is a promising cutting-edge technology in handling specific problems related to offshore development, but the close evaluation of SSWS performance is quite lacking. This work develops an integrated production modeling (IPM) approach to comprehensively quantify the effect of SSWS both from technological and economical perspectives. A fully-implicit integrated production model is proposed, which assembles 3D reservoir equations and pipeline network equations together and seeks for simultaneous solutions. The feature of simultaneous hydro-thermal solution provides a remarkable value in the analysis of flow assurance issues related to wax deposition in the subsea flowlines. The indexing and mapping frameworks make the model prone to configuring different scenarios, both in temporal and spatial dimensions. A case study is presented to analyze the performance of SSWS under four subsea configurations in a pre-salt deepwater condition by three quantitative indicators: NPV, oil recovery, and wax-free index. Results show that subsea water separation has the potential to increase final oil recovery and project NPV for a clustered well system, while limited benefits shall be expected in a satellite well configuration. Also, higher risk of wax deposition is observed in a satellite well configuration compared to a clustered well system. The IPM approach, together with an economic model, provide decision makers with a way to estimate the break-even price on the investment of a subsea water separation station. The methodology proposed in this work also provides a guide in future assessment of other potential subsea technologies.

Techno-economic analysis of pretreatments to dairy manure biomass for enhanced biogas production

Various thermochemical pretreatment strategies (acid, alkaline, sulfite, alkaline-H2O2) for dairy manure anaerobic digestion were directly evaluated to analyze their techno-economic performance. Three biogas utilization scenarios (electricity, biomethane, liquefied biomethane) were considered to determine breakeven price of each biogas-derived product at which the technology becomes economically feasible. Breakeven prices for all three end-products were higher than the current market prices when no incentives were considered. Generating electricity using biogas appeared to be the most economically attractive option with the least difference and variation from current market values. Techno-economic analysis revealed that moderate-acid pretreatment performs better for larger facilities (≥5000 animal units) whereas severe-alkaline pretreatment is preferred for smaller facilities (≤2500 animal units). A study in the Upper Yahara Watershed (Wisconsin, USA) was performed to investigate supply chain logistical issues; here, it was found that severe-alkaline pretreatment is preferred due to the highly distributed nature of manure production and associated transportation costs.

Prospective Life Cycle Assessment and Cost Analysis of Novel Electrochemical Struvite Recovery in a U.S. Wastewater Treatment Plant

Nutrient recovery in domestic wastewater treatment has increasingly become an important area of study as the supply of non-renewable phosphorus decreases. Recent bench-scale trials indicate that co-generation of struvite and hydrogen using electrochemical methods may offer an alternative to existing recovery options utilized by municipal wastewater treatment facilities. However, implementation has yet to be explored at plant-scale. In the development of novel nutrient recovery processes, both economic and environmental assessments are necessary to guide research and their design. The aim of this study was to conduct a prospective life cycle assessment and cost analysis of a new electrochemical struvite recovery technology that utilizes a sacrificial magnesium anode to precipitate struvite and generate hydrogen gas. This technology was modeled using process simulation software GPS-X and CapdetWorks assuming its integration in a full-scale existing wastewater treatment plant with and without anaerobic digestion. Struvite recoveries of 18–33% were achieved when anaerobic digestion was included, with a break-even price of $6.03/kg struvite and $15.58/kg of hydrogen required to offset increased costs for recovery. Struvite recovery reduced aquatic eutrophication impacts as well as terrestrial acidification impacts. Tradeoffs between benefits from struvite and burdens from electrode manufacturing were found for several impact categories.

Life cycle assessment and techno-economic analysis of nitrogen recovery by ammonia air-stripping from wastewater treatment

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) with anaerobic digestion of biosolids produce an ammonia-rich sidestream out of which nitrogen can be recovered through air stripping. Recovered ammonia can be used to produce ammonium sulfate (AS) for agricultural use, enabling the circular return of nitrogen as fertilizer to the food system. We investigate the cost and life cycle environmental impact of recovering ammonia from the sidestream of WWTPs for conversion to AS and compare it to AS production from the Haber Bosch process. We perform life cycle assessment (LCA) to investigate the environmental impact of AS fertilizer production by air-stripping ammonia from WWTP sidestreams at varying sidestream nitrogen concentrations. Techno-economic analysis (TEA) is performed to assess the break-even selling price of sidestream AS production at a WWTP in the City of Philadelphia. Greenhouse gas emissions for air-stripping technology range between 0.2 and 0.5 kg CO2e/kg AS, about six times lower than the hydrocarbon-based Haber-Bosch process, estimated at 2.5 kg CO2e/kg AS. Further reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is feasible by replacing fossil-based energy use in air-stripping process (82–98 % of net energy demand) with renewable sources. Also, a significant reduction in mineral depletion and improvement in human and ecosystem health are observed for the air-stripping approach. Furthermore, the break-even selling price for installing sidestream-based AS production at the Philadelphia's WWTP, considering capital and operating costs, is estimated at $0.046/kg AS (100 %), which is 92 % lower than the 2014 estimate of AS's average selling price at farms in the United States. We conclude that even with varying ammonia concentrations and high sidestream volume, air-stripping technology offers an environmentally and economically favorable option for implementing nitrogen recovery and simultaneous production of AS at WWTPs.

Rye-soybean double-crop: planting method and N fertilization effects in the North Central US

AbstractDouble-cropping winter rye cover crops (CC) with soybean in the North Central US could help with the global effort to sustainably intensify agriculture. Studies addressing the management of these systems are limited. Therefore, a field study was conducted from 2017 to 2019 in Central Iowa, US to evaluate winter rye CC biomass production, aboveground N accumulation, estimated economics, estimated within-field energy balance and estimated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions under three N application rates (0, 60, 120 kg N ha−1) and three planting methods (pre- and post-harvest broadcast and post-harvest drilling). Averaged over N rates, all planting methods resulted in >5.0 Mg ha−1 year−1 rye aboveground biomass dry matter. Averaged over the 2-year study and compared with unfertilized treatments, applying 60 kg N ha−1 produced 1.1 Mg ha−1 more aboveground biomass (6.1 vs 5.0 Mg ha−1), accumulated 30 kg ha−1 more N in aboveground biomass (88 vs 58 kg N ha−1), and led to 20 GJ ha−1 more net energy. Biomass production was not significantly higher with 120 kg N ha−1 compared with the 60 kg N ha−1 rate. Even when accounting for an estimated 0.75 Mg ha−1 of above ground rye biomass left in the field after harvesting, more N was removed than applied at the 60 kg N ha−1 rate. The minimum rye prices over the 2-year study needed for double-cropping winter rye CC to be profitable (breakeven prices) averaged $117 and $104 Mg−1 for the 0 and 60 kg N ha−1 rates, which factors in estimated soybean yield reductions in 2019 compared with local averages but not off-site transportation. GHG emissions were estimated to increase approximately threefold between the unfertilized and 60 kg N ha−1 rates without considering bioenergy offsets. While environmental tradeoffs need further study, results suggest harvesting fertilized rye CC biomass before planting soybean is a promising practice for the North Central US to maximize total crop and net energy production.

Sustainable heating alternatives for 1960's and 1970's renovated apartment buildings

The Finnish Government target of carbon neutrality by 2035 is challenging for the district heat (DH) systems of Finnish cities, as nearly 50% of the DH fuels are still fossil or peat. The DH price in Finnish cities is rising intensively. To avoid energy poverty, it is imperative to develop low-carbon DH solutions affordable for all customers. The feasibility of various low-carbon scenarios supplying a DH network is investigated with three different energy renovation levels. Biomass combustion technologies (combined heat and power (CHP) and heat only boiler (HOB)) and waste heat recovery technologies (Heat Pump and Electric Boiler) are analyzed. The economic and sensitivity analyses of the DH network are carried out from utility and end-user viewpoints. The operation cost and break-even price of heat are calculated in different renovation levels. Biomass HOB has the lowest operation cost at all renovation levels followed by waste heat-heat pump. Waste heat-heat pump + electric boiler has the lowest total cost, 53–58 €/MWh, at all renovation levels. Waste heat recovery scenarios were found sensitive to changes in electricity price. Waste heat-heat pump has the lowest overall emissions, whereas biomass combustion causes high emissions of biogenic CO 2 , NO x and particulate matter. Highlights • Biomass combustion scenarios have lower operation cost but higher investment. • A novel scenario composed of waste heat-heat pump and electric boiler is proposed. . • Combination of heat pump and electric boiler has lowest total cost, 53–58 €/MWh. • Life-time costs of energy renovations are higher than the savings in heating costs. • Waste heat recovery scenarios are sensitive to changes in electricity price.

Profitability assessment and efficiency analysis of tilapia farming in Bangladesh: An application on data envelopment analysis

This study was carried out to find out the financial profitability and technical efficiency of tilapia fish farmers in the selected area of Bangladesh. A total of 70 tilapia fish farmers (large 36 farmers and small 34 farmers) were selected from major tilapia producing area at Trishal upazila of Mymensingh district in Bangladesh. To fulfill the objectives of this study, profitability, socioeconomic analysis, Cobb-Douglas production function and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) were employed. Study revealed that gross profit margin of the large farmers was 24.42% and small scale farmers was 23.8% indicating that farmers did not enough well in managing their farm and farmers has less capacity to cover for operating, financing and other cost. Break-even price for the large tilapia farmers worked out Tk. 77.33 per kg and small farmers was Tk. 81.56 per kg while break-even production for large farmers was found 1159.64 kg per hectare. Benefit cost ratio, net profit margin were found more than one and positive respectively, indicated that tilapia farming was commercially profitable. Considering all selected farmers, tilapia farming found a profitable business where undiscounted BCR for large farmers was 1.213 and a small farmer was 1.230. The mean technical efficiency level of tilapia fish farmers was 81.8 (where allocative efficiency was 93.1 and scale efficiency was 88.2) percent, implies that by operating at full technical efficiency levels, tilapia yield could be increased and efficient farmers found more productive than inefficient farmers. The results of technical efficiency showed that the farmers were efficient nevertheless, the sample farmers operated well below the production frontier and hence that they still had a chance to achieve targeted yields. Farmer’s financial benefit can be increased by reducing the feed price or increasing the output price. Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. Tech. 12(1): 120-128, June 2022

Gas Turbine Compressor Washing Economics and Optimization Using Genetic Algorithm

Abstract Studies have shown that online compressor washing of gas turbine engines slows down the rate of fouling deterioration during operation. However, for most operators, there is a balancing between the performance improvements obtained and the investment (capital and recurring cost). Washing the engine more frequently to keep the capacity high is a consideration. However, this needs to be addressed with expenditure over the life of the washing equipment rather than a simple cost-benefit analysis. The work presented here is a viability study of online compressor washing for 17 gas turbine engines ranging from 5.3 to 307 MW. It considers the nonlinear cost of the washing equipment related to size categories, as well as nonlinear washing liquid consumption related to the variations in engine mass flows. Importantly, the respective electricity break-even selling price of the respective engines was considered. The results show that for the largest engine, the return of investment (RoI) is 520% and the dynamic payback time of 0.19 years when washing every 72 h. When this is less frequent at a 480-h interval, the investment return and payback are 462% and 0.22 years. The optimization study using a multi-objective genetic algorithm shows that the optimal washing is rather a 95-h interval. For the smallest engine, the investment was the least viable for this type of application.

A techno-economic assessment of nutrient recovery from wastewater using microalgae: scenario in India collected from published literature.

The true potential of the microalgae-based wastewater treatment (MWT) process is determined based on whether the process will provide a positive energy output and whether it is economically viable. The objectives of this study are dynamic modelling of microalgae growth based on initial wastewater concentration, temperature, solar radiation and a techno-economic assessment for an MWT scheme for application in a hot, dry climate. Through reference to relevant literature data on MWT in the Indian subcontinent, a selection of appropriate microalgal species Chlorella and Scenedesmus was made. The dynamic model developed was successfully calibrated and validated using independent experimental data collected from the published literature. Cost of production of bio-crude from microalgae grown in a hybrid photobioreactor and pond system in kitchen wastewater of Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad was calculated. A break-even selling price (BESP) of US$0.549/kg was obtained for the microalgae biomass. The cost of production of 1 L bio-crude was US$0.96 (Rs 69-74), which is comparable with crude oil cost. The model developed can be used by practising engineers to predict biomass growth and nutrient removal, thereby achieving a break-even point for cost efficiency.