PROC2089 PROCESS PLANT DESIGN & ECONOMICS Process Plant Economics - Cash Flow Analysis An economic feasibility study is to be carried out for an inorganic acid plant to be built in an industrial area adjacent to an Australian port town. The plant is to be operated continuously throughout the year. The capital and operating costs data for the plant are shown in the following table. All costs are expressed in Australian dollars (A$). Design capacity of the plant Fixed capital Variable operating costs (including raw materials and utilities) for 100% plant production rate Fixed operating costs (including depreciation) + non- manufacturing costs Working capital 600,000 tonnes per year $500 million Australian dollars 515 million dollars per year 72.5 million dollars per year 132 million dollars per year Plant construction will start in January 2020 and end in December 2020. It is expected that the production will start in January 2021 immediately after the construction. The fixed capital and working capital will be spent entirely in 2020. The plant will start producing at its full design capacity of 600,000 tpy from 2021 onwards. The production life of the plant may be taken as 10 years. Straight-line method is to be used to depreciate the plant over its production life. The plant would have no salvage value. Working capital is fully recoverable at the end of the plant life. The corporate tax rate is 30% of taxable income and tax will be paid in the same year the income is generated. The estimated selling price of the product is $1200 per tonne. On the basis of the information provided, a) Construct a cash flow table and estimate the cash flows after tax for the years of plant construction and operation. (Show only the cash flow table. No need to show step-by- step written calculations). b) Draw a cumulative cash flow diagram using the cash flow estimated in question (a) and estimate the payback period. (Graph sheet provided at the end of this paper)