Preliminary estimates of the lifetime costs and benefits (expressed
as a net present value (NPV) calculation) of each shortlisted measure
were then generated using estimates derived from the grey and academic
literature on its technical and economic performance. This economic
analysis considered only the private financial costs and benefits
of deployment in each context, comprising lifetime capital, running
and maintenance costs, compared with Business as Usual (BAU) practice.
Again adopting a process of iterated participatory appraisal, these
estimates were reviewed and refined by stakeholder groups to ensure
that they were locally appropriate and as realistic and accurate as
possible.We adopted a standard real interest rate of 5% and assumed
an annual increase of 3% in real energy prices. Prices for measures
were held constant (at 2014 levels) without taking technological
learning in the low carbon sector into account, thereby making the estimates of economic and environmental performance of the measures
more conservative.