Washington County's Board of Representatives is considering the construction of a longer runway at the county airport. Currently, the airport can handle only private aircraft and small commuter jets. A new, long runway would enable the airport to handle the midsize jets used on many domestic flights. Data pertinent to the board's decision appear below.
Cost of acquiring additional land for runway ................................................................ $ 70,000
Cost of runway construction ........................................................................................... 200,000
Cost of extending perimeter fence ................................................................................. 29,840
Cost of runway lights ....................................................................................................... 39,600
Annual cost of maintaining new runway ......................................................................... 28,000
Annual incremental revenue from landing fees ............................................................... 40,000
In addition to the preceding data, two other facts are relevant to the decision. First, a longer runway will require a new snowplow, which will cost $100,000. The old snowplow could be sold now for $10,000. The new, larger plow will cost $12,000 more in annual operating costs. Second, the County Board of Representatives believes that the proposed long runway, and the major jet service it will bring to the county, will increase economic activity in the community. The board projects that the increased economic activity will result in $64,000 per year in additional tax revenue for the county.
In analyzing the runway proposal, the board has decided to use a 10-year time horizon. The county's hurdle rate for capital projects is 12 percent.
Required:
1. Compute the initial cost of the investment in the long runway.
2. Compute the annual net cost or benefit from the runway.
3. Determine the IRR on the proposed long runway. Should it be built?