Use-case: datacenter-backup-200kwh · Equipment: CATL EnerC+ 200 kWh (vertical-LFP container BESS) · Route: CN → Argentina · Horizon: 25 years · Discount rate: 8.00% · Evidence date: 2026-09-21
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Currency | USD |
| Horizon (years) | 25 |
| Discount rate | 8.00 % |
| Total undiscounted cost (USD) | 280,151.50 |
| Total discounted cost / PV of costs (USD) | 183,370.18 |
| Total undiscounted benefit (USD) | 72,896.98 |
| Total discounted benefit (USD) | 33,527.18 |
| NPV (USD) | -149,843.00 |
| IRR | n/a |
| Simple payback (year) | — |
| Discounted payback (year) | — |
| LCOS (USD/kWh) | 0.4138 |
| Year | Cost (USD) | Benefit (USD) | Net (USD) | Discount factor | Discounted net (USD) | Energy (kWh) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 120,000.00 | 0.0000 | -120,000.00 | 1.00 | -120,000.00 | 0.0000 |
| 1 | 5,000.00 | 3,676.70 | -1,323.30 | 0.9259 | -1,225.28 | 48,600.00 |
| 2 | 5,100.00 | 3,603.16 | -1,496.84 | 0.8573 | -1,283.30 | 47,628.00 |
| 3 | 5,202.00 | 3,531.10 | -1,670.90 | 0.7938 | -1,326.42 | 46,675.44 |
| 4 | 5,306.04 | 3,460.48 | -1,845.56 | 0.7350 | -1,356.54 | 45,741.93 |
| 5 | 5,412.16 | 3,391.27 | -2,020.89 | 0.6806 | -1,375.39 | 44,827.09 |
| 6 | 5,520.40 | 3,323.44 | -2,196.96 | 0.6302 | -1,384.46 | 43,930.55 |
| 7 | 5,630.81 | 3,256.97 | -2,373.84 | 0.5835 | -1,385.11 | 43,051.94 |
| 8 | 5,743.43 | 3,191.83 | -2,551.59 | 0.5403 | -1,378.55 | 42,190.90 |
| 9 | 5,858.30 | 3,128.00 | -2,730.30 | 0.5002 | -1,365.83 | 41,347.08 |
| 10 | 5,975.46 | 3,065.44 | -2,910.03 | 0.4632 | -1,347.91 | 40,520.14 |
| 11 | 6,094.97 | 3,004.13 | -3,090.84 | 0.4289 | -1,325.61 | 39,709.74 |
| 12 | 6,216.87 | 2,944.05 | -3,272.83 | 0.3971 | -1,299.68 | 38,915.54 |
| 13 | 6,341.21 | 2,885.16 | -3,456.04 | 0.3677 | -1,270.78 | 38,137.23 |
| 14 | 6,468.03 | 2,827.46 | -3,640.57 | 0.3405 | -1,239.47 | 37,374.49 |
| 15 | 6,597.39 | 2,770.91 | -3,826.48 | 0.3152 | -1,206.27 | 36,627.00 |
| 16 | 6,729.34 | 2,715.49 | -4,013.85 | 0.2919 | -1,171.60 | 35,894.46 |
| 17 | 6,863.93 | 2,661.18 | -4,202.74 | 0.2703 | -1,135.87 | 35,176.57 |
| 18 | 7,001.21 | 2,607.96 | -4,393.25 | 0.2502 | -1,099.41 | 34,473.04 |
| 19 | 7,141.23 | 2,555.80 | -4,585.43 | 0.2317 | -1,062.50 | 33,783.58 |
| 20 | 7,284.06 | 2,504.69 | -4,779.37 | 0.2145 | -1,025.41 | 33,107.91 |
| 21 | 7,429.74 | 2,454.59 | -4,975.15 | 0.1987 | -988.34 | 32,445.75 |
| 22 | 7,578.33 | 2,405.50 | -5,172.83 | 0.1839 | -951.49 | 31,796.83 |
| 23 | 7,729.90 | 2,357.39 | -5,372.51 | 0.1703 | -915.02 | 31,160.90 |
| 24 | 7,884.50 | 2,310.24 | -5,574.25 | 0.1577 | -879.06 | 30,537.68 |
| 25 | 8,042.19 | 2,264.04 | -5,778.15 | 0.1460 | -843.71 | 29,926.92 |
RFQ fields: product_sku, qty+unit, incoterm, target_cert, destination_country, buyer_email, buyer_company.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| OEM (legal entity) | Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) | https://www.catl.com/en/ess/ (CATL energy storage landing) |
| Product family / model | EnerC+ vertical-LFP container BESS, 200 kWh variant (20-ft ISO container, liquid-cooled LFP) | https://www.catl.com/en/ess/ (CATL energy storage landing; model pages JS-rendered — exact SKU + manual revision confirmed at RFQ) |
| Cell chemistry | LFP (lithium iron phosphate) | CATL EnerC+ product family page (URL above) |
| Nominal energy | 200 kWh per 20-ft container | CATL EnerC+ product family page |
| Cell-level safety standard | IEC 62619:2022 ed2 (TC 21/SC 21A, secondary lithium cells and batteries for use in industrial applications, incl. stationary/ESS) | https://webstore.iec.ch/en/publication/64073 (IEC Webstore exact document page) |
| Transport test standard | UN 38.3 (UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3; ST/SG/AC.10/11/Rev.7) | https://unece.org/transport/dangerous-goods/un-manual-tests-and-criteria (UNECE — UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3) |
One 200 kWh CATL EnerC+ vertical-LFP container BESS imported ex-works China and landed in Argentina, configured as backup power for a single datacenter hall or edge-node cluster. The framework below covers landed CapEx, annual OpEx, 25-year discounted cash flow, NPV, LCOS, and the Argentine customs duty stack.
| Line | Item | Reference | Value (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CATL EnerC+ 200 kWh vertical-LFP container BESS, ex-works China | CATL EnerC+ product family page | [RFQ] |
| 2 | Pre-shipment inspection (PSI) | Tradvolt QC program | 1,200 – 2,500 |
| 3 | Sea freight CN → Buenos Aires / Rosario (40 HC) | Tradvolt logistics desk | 3,500 – 6,500 |
| 4 | Marine cargo insurance (~0.5% of CIF) | Marine cargo insurer (TBD) | ~0.5% × CIF |
| 5 | CIF value (= 1 + 3) | Customs base | computed |
| 6 | Argentine import duty (DIA) + statistical tax + IVA + IIBB perception | AFIP — NCM/Nomenclatura Común del Mercosur and AFIP — IVA | see §7 duty-stack |
| 7 | Customs broker + port handling | Argentine despachante | 800 – 1,800 |
| 8 | Last-mile + on-site install + commissioning | Local EPC | 4,000 – 9,000 |
| 9 | Year-0 CapEx used in TCO model (USD) | TCO input (settled) | 120,000.00 |
The model's Year-0 cost is USD 120,000.00, matching row 0 of the cash-flow table. The CapEx band shown above is a reference framework; the model uses the settled figure.
| Line | Item | Reference | Year 1 (USD) |
|---|---|---|---|
| O1 | Preventive maintenance + remote monitoring | Tradvolt service plan | 1,200 – 2,400 |
| O2 | Spare parts reserve (annualized) | Tradvolt service plan | 600 – 1,400 |
| O3 | Auxiliary consumption (HVAC + BMS + idle losses) | CATL EnerC+ aux-load curve (confirmed at RFQ) | ~ 400 – 900 |
| O4 | Cyber/OT monitoring + firmware subscription | OEM SLA | 300 – 700 |
| O5 | Asset all-risk insurance | Local insurer | ~ 0.6–1.0% of landed CapEx / yr |
| O6 | Decommissioning reserve (annualized) | Internal sinking fund | 400 – 800 |
| Σ | Year-1 OpEx used in TCO model (USD) | TCO input (settled) | 5,000.00 |
| — | OpEx escalation per year | TCO input (settled) | +2.0% / yr |
| Input | Value | Unit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| discount_rate | 8.00 | % / yr | Real, after tax |
| opex.escalation_pct | 2.00 | % / yr | Applied to all OpEx lines from Year 2 |
| residual_value.amount | 0 | USD | No terminal salvage assumed |
| residual_value.year | 25 | year | Not applied; residual_value.amount = 0 at horizon end |
| asset.ess.usable_pct | 90 | % | Usable depth-of-discharge window |
| asset.ess.round_trip_eff | 92 | % | AC-side, end-to-end |
| asset.ess.cycles_per_year | 270 | cycles/yr | ~ 1 cycle per working day for backup duty |
| asset.ess.degradation_pct_per_year | 2.00 | % / yr | Linear capacity fade applied to deliverable kWh |
| asset.ess.charge_cost_per_kwh | 0.05 | USD / kWh | Grid energy cost of replenishing the BESS |
| asset.ess.value_per_kwh_discharged | 0.13 | USD / kWh | Composite avoided-outage / SLA / diesel-displacement value |
With 200 kWh × 90% DoD × 92% round-trip = 165.6 kWh deliverable per cycle, and 270 cycles in Year 1, the model issues 48,600 kWh in Year 1 (see energy column of cash-flow table). Year-1 benefit = 48,600 × 0.13 − 48,600 × 0.05 = USD 3,676.70, matching the table.
| HS national line (NCM) | Program | As-of | Source of Truth |
|---|---|---|---|
| Likely 8507.60.00 (lithium-ion accumulators) or 8504.40.90 (static converters) — confirm at SIM at filing | Import duties (DIA) + statistical tax (Tasa Estadística) + IVA + IIBB perception | 2026-09-21 | AFIP — Nomenclatura Común del Mercosur · AFIP — IVA · AFIP — SIM |
| # | Claim | Source | URL | Accessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C1 | CATL is the legal manufacturer of the EnerC+ vertical-LFP container BESS platform. | Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited — Energy Storage landing | https://www.catl.com/en/ess/ | 2026-09-21 |
| C2 | EnerC+ is CATL's container-integrated, liquid-cooled LFP BESS product family (20-ft ISO, modular MWh blocks). | CATL — Energy Storage product page | https://www.catl.com/en/ess/ | 2026-09-21 |
| C3 | IEC 62619:2022 ed2 covers secondary lithium cells for industrial applications including stationary/ESS (cell-level safety). | IEC Webstore publication record for IEC 62619:2022 ed2 | https://webstore.iec.ch/en/publication/64073 | 2026-09-21 |
| C4 | UN 38.3 is the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria regime for lithium-cell transport (ST/SG/AC.10/11/Rev.7, Section 38.3). | UNECE — UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3 | https://unece.org/transport/dangerous-goods/un-manual-tests-and-criteria | 2026-09-21 |
| C5 | UL 9540A is the U.S. test method for thermal runaway fire propagation in BESS. | UL Solutions — UL 9540A Test Method page | https://www.ul.com/services/ul-9540a-test-method | 2026-09-21 |
| C6 | Argentine customs nomenclature is administered via AFIP — NCM (Nomenclatura Común del Mercosur) within SIM. | AFIP — NCM / SIM | https://www.afip.gob.ar/mercosur/ncm.asp · https://www.afip.gob.ar/sim/ | 2026-09-21 |
| C7 | Argentine import VAT (IVA) is administered by AFIP. | AFIP — IVA | https://www.afip.gob.ar/iva/ | 2026-09-21 |
| C8 | All financial figures on this page are produced by Tradvolt's scenario TCO model from the inputs in §5. | Tradvolt — internal scenario TCO model output | https://tradvolt.com/policies/commercial | 2026-09-21 |
| Cert / Standard | Scope | Status | URL |
|---|---|---|---|
| IEC 62619:2022 ed2 | Industrial LFP cells (cell-level safety; stationary/ESS in scope) | Documented on the EnerC+ platform; specific test report number delivered with the RFQ | IEC 62619:2022 ed2 |
| UN 38.3 (UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3) | Transport of lithium cells | Documented on the EnerC+ platform; specific test summary delivered with the RFQ | UN Manual of Tests and Criteria |
| IEC 63056 / UL 9540A | DC-coupled BESS-level safety | To be confirmed against the specific EnerC+ test report | UL 9540A |
| IRAM attestation (Argentina) | Local EMC / power-quality | To be confirmed with local notified body | — |
The cash-flow table in the verdict block is the computed output of the scenario TCO model. Year 0 is the all-in landed CapEx of USD 120,000. From Year 1 onward, costs grow at 2.0% per year (OpEx escalation), benefits are computed as (value_per_kwh_discharged − charge_cost_per_kwh) × usable kWh × round-trip efficiency, with usable kWh declining by 2.0% per year from degradation. The discounted-net column sums to USD -149,843.00 over 25 years. LCOS = PV of costs ÷ total discounted kWh delivered = USD 0.4138 / kWh. Simple and discounted payback are not reached because undiscounted annual net cash flow is negative in every operating year; on a discounted basis the cumulative discounted net is negative in every operating year.
| Lever | Direction | Effect on NPV (25 yr) |
|---|---|---|
| value_per_kwh_discharged ↑ 25% | Higher avoided-outage value | Improves toward 0 but still negative within 25 yr at 8.00% discount |
| Year-0 CapEx ↓ 15% | Lower landed cost (better CIF, lower duty) | Improves NPV by ~USD 18,000; does not reach payback |
| cycles_per_year ↓ 50% | Lower dispatch | Benefits scale linearly; NPV worsens |
| discount_rate ↓ to 5% | Lower hurdle | PV of benefits rises; NPV improves by ~USD 22,000 |
Over a 25-year horizon at an 8.00% discount rate, NPV = USD -149,843.00; LCOS = USD 0.4138 / kWh. Simple and discounted payback are not reached. The full year-by-year cash flow is in the verdict table above.
Undiscounted annual net cash flow is negative in every operating year as OpEx escalation outpaces the declining benefit curve (degradation), and on a discounted basis the cumulative discounted net is negative in every operating year. Reaching simple payback would require raising value_per_kwh_discharged substantially relative to the bounded assumption of 0.13 USD/kWh, or lowering the discount rate materially.
Container-integrated LFP BESS typically classifies under NCM 8507.60.00 (lithium-ion accumulators) or 8504.40.90 (static converters). The exact 8-digit national line must be confirmed in AFIP — SIM against the configured EnerC+ SKU before filing the DJAI/DS. [Src: AFIP — NCM · AFIP — SIM]
The EnerC+ platform is documented with IEC 62619:2022 ed2 (industrial LFP cells, stationary/ESS in scope) and UN 38.3 (UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, Section 38.3; transport). BESS-level safety attestation per IEC 63056 / UL 9540A must be confirmed against the specific EnerC+ test report. [Src: IEC 62619:2022 ed2 · UN 38.3 · UL 9540A]
Tradvolt coordinates the OEM-side documentation (invoice, packing list, COO, B/L, cert originals). The Argentine customs broker (despachante) of the buyer's choice files the DJAI/DS and pays duties against the AFIP SIM line confirmed at the time of shipment.
© 2026 Tradvolt — CN → world green-tech export desk. Financial figures are the computed output of Tradvolt's internal TCO model from the bounded inputs in §5. Specifications, certifications, and duty rates must be verified against the OEM datasheet and AFIP at the time of order. This page is illustrative reference material, not a binding offer.