← SCP Cost Explorer Read on SCP Wiki ↗
SCP-163 Safe ~ medium confidence
SCP-163
Expected annual
$2.1M
One-time setup
$5.7M
Annual recurring
$2.0M
Personnel
6
Initial capital expenditures total approximately $5.7M driven by construction, analytical instrumentation, and specialized suits/equipment; annual operations are about $2.0M/yr driven by staffing, instrument service, consumables (chemical feed and air filters), security, and black-market recovery operations.
🏗️ One-Time Capital Costs Total: $5.7M
Facilities $2.1M
[#1, #17, #27] Construction/build-out of the 365 m² containment suite, vault installation/shielding for recovered items, and initial discovery-site remediation/excavation and transport.
Initial Research And Lab Setup $2.0M
[#12] High-end analytical instrumentation suite (ICP-MS, mass specs, sequencer, EM) and laboratory commissioning for novel biochemistry/elemental analysis.
Equipment $819K
[#2, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #14, #15, #20, #22, #29] HVAC/filtration install, dual-spectrum lighting, engineering PPE/fixtures, personnel isolation suits, SCP-sized suit, UV flashlights, access-control/CCTV hardware and server, decontamination/autoclave unit, generator/UPS, and archiving hardware.
Reserve Fund Seed $500K
[#28] Seeded insurance / reserve fund to cover catastrophic containment failure, litigation, or large remediation costs.
Legal Setup $200K
[#23] One-time legal/cover-story setup, initial PR/denial preparation, and permit/secrecy arrangement costs.
Training Program Setup $30K
[#24] Development of Manual M-163-2 training program, simulation design, and initial instructor costs.
🔄 Annual Recurring Costs Total: $2.0M/yr
Staff Wages $520K/yr
[#13] Salaries and benefits for principal researcher, technicians, junior researcher/escort, and administrative support (see personnel breakdown).
Research And Monitoring $315K/yr
[#11, #12, #16] Continuous air-quality monitoring and daily lab analyses, analytical instrument service contracts (annual service ~12% of capital), and researcher time for data analysis and Manual M-163-2 maintenance.
Security Staffing $300K/yr
[#14] 24/7 guard contingent and associated wages to maintain site security and prevent unauthorized access.
Black Market Operations $200K/yr
[#18] Ongoing covert operations, buy-backs, surveillance, and investigative costs to recover looted/salvaged technology (baseline level).
Supplies And Consumables $174K/yr
[#3, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #20, #26] Weekly specialized air filters, bulb replacements, PPE replacements, suit maintenance, SCP suit repairs, UV batteries/spares, routine 20 L chemical feed procurement (baseline common mix), decon consumables, and workshop consumables/parts.
Research Program $150K/yr
[#25] Annual research funding for permitted behavioral/physiology studies and small equipment/parts.
Cover Story And Legal $75K/yr
[#23] Ongoing legal, PR, and cover/denial maintenance costs, local liaison work for discovery site relations.
Misc Overhead $60K/yr
[#30] Site overhead allocation, utilities, housekeeping (non-decon areas), and general administrative supplies.
Insurance Premiums $50K/yr
[#28] If reserve is insured: ongoing premium or reserve carrying costs.
Facilities Maintenance $35K/yr
[#2, #17] HVAC and environmental system maintenance/calibration and monitoring/maintenance of vault security systems.
Logistics And Transport $30K/yr
[#10] Hazardous waste handling, certified disposal, transport, and decontamination of empty chemical containers and contaminated materials.
Emergency Response Fund $25K/yr
[#21] Annual allocation for drills, rapid-response team readiness, and incident contingencies.
Power And Backup $20K/yr
[#22] Incremental electricity for continuous systems and annual generator/UPS maintenance.
Occupational Health $15K/yr
[#19] Regular medical exams, toxicology screens, and specialized exposure monitoring for staff.
Training Onboarding $10K/yr
[#24] Annual costs for onboarding new cleared staff, background checks, and refresher simulations.
Data Storage And Backup $8K/yr
[#15] Ongoing storage, backup, and retention costs for high-resolution CCTV and experiment/video archives.
Archiving Recurring $5K/yr
[#29] Offsite backups, integrity checks, and archival maintenance.
⚡ Cost Scenarios
📊 Baseline (baseline) $2.0M/yr
81.0% probability / year
Normal year with no major incidents; routine operations, scheduled maintenance, and baseline recovery activity.
routine_maintenance scheduled_deliveries no_incidents
🚨 Minor Incident $2.1M/yr
8.0% probability / year +$100K vs baseline
Small containment incident or equipment failure requiring emergency response, limited repairs, medical checks, and short-term external consulting.
equipment_failure localized_contamination staff_exposure
🚨 Major Breach $3.5M/yr
1.0% probability / year +$1.5M vs baseline
Significant containment breach, major equipment damage, or public exposure requiring large-scale remediation, legal action, and rebuild/re-housing.
containment_failure public_exposure major_equipment_loss
🚨 Aggressive Black Market Campaign $2.5M/yr
10.0% probability / year +$500K vs baseline
Year with intensified covert recovery operations and buy-backs due to increased looting activity, substantially raising recovery costs.
increased_looting high_priority_recoveries escalated_covert_ops
👥 Personnel 6 total
Role Count Notes
Principal Researcher 1 [#13] Senior scientist (Dr.-level) included in staff_wages estimate.
Research Technician 3 [#13] Technicians for daily tests, sampling, escort duties; combined in staff_wages.
Junior Researcher / Escort 1 [#13] Junior researcher assigned as escort during roaming; included in staff_wages.
Administrative Staff 1 [#13] Admin support for scheduling, documentation, and secure record handling; included in staff_wages.
📋 Confidence Notes
Analyst notes provide detailed line-item ranges enabling bounded estimates, but several major drivers (chemical feed composition, site selection, and extent of black-market activity) remain uncertain, producing moderate confidence.
← SCP-162 ↑ All SCPs SCP-164 →