Overview of the Cash Flow Element

The Cash Flow element computes the net present value The present value of a project's future cash flow (i.e., the cash value today of future returns) minus the initial investment. (NPV) and internal rate of return A measure of the profitability of a project, venture or undertaking. It represents the discount rate at which the net present value of the project is equal to zero. (IRR) of a cash flow history. This element is used to model the future return of projects, business ventures, and similar undertakings.

The property dialog looks like this:

After specifying the currency units you wish to use, you must specify expenses and revenues (which can be entered as continuous rates or discrete items).

You then specify whether you want to compute the NPV, the IRR (or both). Calculation of the NPV requires a discount rate.

In addition to the NPV and the IRR, the element also outputs the cumulative (undiscounted) cash flow (revenues -expenses):