MBR capital cost
MBR operating cost
MBR database

Electricity cost

Cost comparison of MBR and SBR

Upgrading an existing wastewater treatment to MBR may be cheaper than upgrading with other existing processes. For upgrading from 8,000m³/d oxidation ditch to 20,000m³/d MBR, the capital cost is estimated at US$24,950,000, which equals to US$1248/ (m³/d).  If upgrade to step feed activated sludge reactor with the previous final capacity will cost US$34,311,000, which equals to US$1716/(m³/d).

Additional operating cost

The additional operating cost for upgrading by MBR is US$369,100 per year, and by step feed activated sludge reactor is $167,000 per year.

Present value

Based on a 20 year life cycle and an interest rate of 4.9 percent, the total 20-year present value cost to treat 20,000m³/d through the stepfeed treatment train is $36,410,000. The present value by MBR is $29,590,000, which is almost 20% lower.

Above data is from report for NYSERDA  (NEW YORK STATE ENERGY RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY)