Inside the Reference Plant's Costs
Where does the money go in Setcoin's 2 GW reference plant, and what does each year of operation cost?
Chapter summary
almost all of it goes on launch.
Key takeaways
- 1
The reference plant (10 kg/kW, $1,000/kg to low orbit, transfer factor 2.5, $2/W hardware, $0.3/W rectenna) costs about $54.6 billion: about $50 billion for launch and orbit transfer, $4 billion for space hardware and $0.6 billion for rectennas and ground systems.
- 2
Spread over 30 years at 8% cost of capital, the capital costs about $4.85 billion a year; operations at 2% of capital add about $1.09 billion.
- 3
Dividing about $5.94 billion a year by 16.6 TWh gives about $357/MWh.
Keep reading with Space access
This chapter (3 exhibits, 335 words) is part of Space & aerospace. Space access opens every chapter of all 11 Space reports, with the interactive models, Excel downloads, Ask and named Atlas records.
- Global Market Analysis: Deep Space Economy
- Space-Based Datacenters: Feasibility Study
- Commercial Space Stations: Feasibility Study
- Defence Space and Missile Defence: Golden Dome and the SDA Architecture
- Launch After Starship: Prices, Capacity and European Sovereign Launch, 2026–2035
- Satellites to Phones: Direct-to-Device Connectivity, Spectrum and Economics, 2026–2035
- Space Supply Chain Bottlenecks: Components, Minerals and Capacity, 2026–2030
- Lunar, Cislunar and Settlement Economics: What the Moon Costs and Who Pays, 2026–2060
- Earth Observation and AI Analytics: What a Square Kilometre Is Worth and Who Captures It, 2026–2035
- In-Space Manufacturing and Microgravity Biotech: Products, Platforms and Economics, 2026–2035
- Space-Based Solar Power: Physics, Costs and the Path to Firm Power from Orbit, 2026–2050
€199 a month or €1,490 a year per sector, after a 7-day free trial. Cancel any time. Need several sectors? All sectors: €999 a month.
Check the live record Space Contracts & Tender Radar · Space Claim Check (free)
Ask about this chapter
Answers drawn from every Setcoin report and the live Atlas. Each statement links to the passage behind it.
Ask is included with every subscription
Cited answers across every report and the Atlas, with follow-up questions and a hand-off to the opportunity finder.
Research for professional investors. Not investment advice, and not an offer of any security or fund interest.