Economic Valuation Framework in Inter-Basin Water Transfer Projects Based on Network Analysis Process (ANP) Method

Identification and evaluation of effective parameters in Inter-Basin Water Transfer (IBWT) projects are essential for the calculation of financial and economic indicators. Due to many qualitative parameters in these projects and inability to quantify most of them, an integrated economic valuation model is presented in this study.

In this model, the effective criteria and indicators are first prioritized using Analytic Network Process (ANP) as a Multi Criteria Decision Making (MCDM) method. Then, these criteria and indicators are quantified by two direct and relative valuation methods. Finally, two financial indicators: Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) and Net-Present Value (NPV) are modified and evaluated.

The results indicated that the political and security criterion is in the first place with significant difference with the others. Also, applying model for economic reassessment of the Chalus Water Transfer Scheme in Iran showed the value of BCR at discount rates of 6% and 8% are to be 0.2 and 0.14, respectively; and NPV is negative. Therefore, this project is not considered to be economically beneficial at its present feature.

It seems that political and security issue is very considerable in Inter-Basin Water Transfer (IBWT) projects. On the other hand, quantifying and valuating effective parameters can help more accurate economic analysis for new and ongoing projects