Madison Electric Company uses a fossil fuel (coal) plant for generating electricity. The facility can generate 900 megawatts (million watts) per hour. The plant operates 600 hours during March. Electricity is used as it is generated; thus, there are no inventories at the beginning or end of the period. The March conversion and fuel costs are as follows:Conversion costs                                   $40,500,000Fuel                                                          10,800,000        Total                                               $51,300,000 Madison also has a wind farm that can generate 100 megawatts per hour. The wind farm receives sufficient wind to run 300 hours for March. The March conversion costs for the wind farm (mostly depreciation) are as follows:              Conversion costs                           $2,700,000a. Determine the cost per megawatt hour (MWh) for the fossil fuel plant and the wind farm to identify the lowest cost facility in March.b. Why are equivalent units of production not needed in determining the cost per megawatt hour (MWh) for generating electricity?c. What advantage does the fossil fuel plant have over the wind farm?

Managerial Accounting
15th Edition
ISBN:9781337912020
Author:Carl Warren, Ph.d. Cma William B. Tayler
Publisher:Carl Warren, Ph.d. Cma William B. Tayler
Chapter3: Process Cost Systems
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Madison Electric Company uses a fossil fuel (coal) plant for generating electricity. The facility can generate 900 megawatts (million watts) per hour. The plant operates 600 hours during March. Electricity is used as it is generated; thus, there are no inventories at the beginning or end of the period. The March conversion and fuel costs are as follows:
Conversion costs                                   $40,500,000
Fuel                                                          10,800,000
        Total                                               $51,300,000

Madison also has a wind farm that can generate 100 megawatts per hour. The wind farm receives sufficient wind to run 300 hours for March. The March conversion costs for the wind farm (mostly depreciation) are as follows:
              Conversion costs                           $2,700,000
a. Determine the cost per megawatt hour (MWh) for the fossil fuel plant and the wind farm to identify the lowest cost facility in March.
b. Why are equivalent units of production not needed in determining the cost per megawatt hour (MWh) for generating electricity?
c. What advantage does the fossil fuel plant have over the wind farm?

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