Released March 27, 2009 | GALWAY, IRELAND
en
Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Alstom SA (EPA:ALO) (Levallois-Perret, France) recently secured a contract worth $680 million from RWE Power AG (Essen, Germany) to supply two 800-megawatt (MW) ultra-supercritical boilers for RWE Power's Eemshaven coal-fired power plant in the Groningen province of The Netherlands. The power plant, scheduled for commissioning in 2013, will supply clean electricity to more than 3 million homes and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2.5 million tons per year.
Alstom's 800-MW boilers are designed to operate under ultra-supercritical steam conditions at high efficiencies of about 47%. In addition to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, the boilers will require 20% less coal for the same power output than previous generations of equipment. The units are also designed to co-fire up to 10% biomass and can be retrofitted with carbon capture and storage equipment.
In April 2008, Alstom secured a similar contract worth $680 million to supply two 800-MW supercritical boilers for RWE Power's coal-fired Westfalen-Hamm power plant in northwestern Germany. The units, designed to operate at steam temperatures of 600 degrees Celsius (1,112 degrees Fahrenheit), will achieve cycle efficiencies of 46%, which is much higher than the average efficiency of 36% achieved by bituminous coal-fired power plants in Europe. Further, the boilers are designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2.5 million tons per year and reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide. The units are scheduled for commissioning in 2011.
In supercritical and ultra-supercritical technologies, a power-generating unit, such as a boiler or turbine, operates under a combination of temperatures and pressures above the critical point, the equilibrium point at which water can coexist in all three states: solid, liquid and gaseous. Under these conditions, the transition of water into steam is eliminated, reducing the amount of energy required and increasing the fuel efficiency of the process. While supercritical units can achieve efficiencies of up to 46%, ultra-supercritical units can attain efficiencies as high as 50%.
Although the U.S. is credited with being the first country to develop supercritical technologies in 1957, Germany and the U.S. are known to have developed ultra-supercritical technology since the 1980s. At present, there are more than 240 supercritical units worldwide whereas there are only 24 ultra-supercritical units in operation globally, primarily in Japan, Germany and the U.S.. Alstom Beizhong Power Beijing Company Limited (Beijing, China), a joint venture of Beijing Heavy Electric Machinery Works (Beijing) and Alstom, is credited with being the first manufacturer of ultra-supercritical, supercritical and subcritical steam turbine and generator units with capacities of 600 MW and higher.
RWE Power is developing the new coal-fired power plant at Eemshaven as part of its strategic expansion program in the power sectors of Germany and Europe. The $2.99 billion power plant will be developed in the coastal region, which will facilitate the transportation of coal, limestone and waste ash to and from the site in environment-friendly barges on the Ems River. The project plans also include provision for steam extraction to enable later use as district heating or process steam.
Kraftanlagen München GmBH (Munchen, Germany) was awarded a contract to provide HP piping systems for the project. In May 2008, Imtech NV (AMS:IM) (Gouda, The Netherlands) secured a $42 million contract to implement technical infrastructure for RWE Power's upcoming coal-fired Westfalen-Hamm power plant in Germany, and expected to receive a similar order worth $44 million for the Eemshaven power plant in early 2009. However, official announcements to that effect are yet to be made. The Eemshaven project will also benefit from the recent acquisition of Essent NV (Arnhem, The Netherlands), an energy utility firm, by RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen) in an all-cash deal worth $12.64 billion.
In January 2007, RWE Power submitted requisite documents for the request of approval for the project to the authorities in Eemshaven. The firm intends to commence construction activities once all official permits have been issued. Construction is expected to take about three and a half years and create about 3,000-on-site jobs. More than 350 long-term jobs are expected to be created after the plant is commissioned.
Recent reports state that the project could be delayed by about 18 months, following a decision by the Council of Europe to challenge the legality of the proposed plant on the basis of environmental concerns and emission norms through the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. Also caught in a similar legal tangle are the coal-fired projects proposed by E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Duesseldorf, Germany) and Electrabel SA (Brussels, Belgium) to be developed on the Maasvlakte industrial zone in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
View Project Report - 73000228
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is a marketing information service specializing in industrial process, energy and financial related markets with products and services ranging from industry news, analytics, forecasting, plant and project databases, as well as multimedia services.
Alstom's 800-MW boilers are designed to operate under ultra-supercritical steam conditions at high efficiencies of about 47%. In addition to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, the boilers will require 20% less coal for the same power output than previous generations of equipment. The units are also designed to co-fire up to 10% biomass and can be retrofitted with carbon capture and storage equipment.
In April 2008, Alstom secured a similar contract worth $680 million to supply two 800-MW supercritical boilers for RWE Power's coal-fired Westfalen-Hamm power plant in northwestern Germany. The units, designed to operate at steam temperatures of 600 degrees Celsius (1,112 degrees Fahrenheit), will achieve cycle efficiencies of 46%, which is much higher than the average efficiency of 36% achieved by bituminous coal-fired power plants in Europe. Further, the boilers are designed to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 2.5 million tons per year and reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide. The units are scheduled for commissioning in 2011.
In supercritical and ultra-supercritical technologies, a power-generating unit, such as a boiler or turbine, operates under a combination of temperatures and pressures above the critical point, the equilibrium point at which water can coexist in all three states: solid, liquid and gaseous. Under these conditions, the transition of water into steam is eliminated, reducing the amount of energy required and increasing the fuel efficiency of the process. While supercritical units can achieve efficiencies of up to 46%, ultra-supercritical units can attain efficiencies as high as 50%.
Although the U.S. is credited with being the first country to develop supercritical technologies in 1957, Germany and the U.S. are known to have developed ultra-supercritical technology since the 1980s. At present, there are more than 240 supercritical units worldwide whereas there are only 24 ultra-supercritical units in operation globally, primarily in Japan, Germany and the U.S.. Alstom Beizhong Power Beijing Company Limited (Beijing, China), a joint venture of Beijing Heavy Electric Machinery Works (Beijing) and Alstom, is credited with being the first manufacturer of ultra-supercritical, supercritical and subcritical steam turbine and generator units with capacities of 600 MW and higher.
RWE Power is developing the new coal-fired power plant at Eemshaven as part of its strategic expansion program in the power sectors of Germany and Europe. The $2.99 billion power plant will be developed in the coastal region, which will facilitate the transportation of coal, limestone and waste ash to and from the site in environment-friendly barges on the Ems River. The project plans also include provision for steam extraction to enable later use as district heating or process steam.
Kraftanlagen München GmBH (Munchen, Germany) was awarded a contract to provide HP piping systems for the project. In May 2008, Imtech NV (AMS:IM) (Gouda, The Netherlands) secured a $42 million contract to implement technical infrastructure for RWE Power's upcoming coal-fired Westfalen-Hamm power plant in Germany, and expected to receive a similar order worth $44 million for the Eemshaven power plant in early 2009. However, official announcements to that effect are yet to be made. The Eemshaven project will also benefit from the recent acquisition of Essent NV (Arnhem, The Netherlands), an energy utility firm, by RWE AG (OTC:RWEOY) (Essen) in an all-cash deal worth $12.64 billion.
In January 2007, RWE Power submitted requisite documents for the request of approval for the project to the authorities in Eemshaven. The firm intends to commence construction activities once all official permits have been issued. Construction is expected to take about three and a half years and create about 3,000-on-site jobs. More than 350 long-term jobs are expected to be created after the plant is commissioned.
Recent reports state that the project could be delayed by about 18 months, following a decision by the Council of Europe to challenge the legality of the proposed plant on the basis of environmental concerns and emission norms through the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg. Also caught in a similar legal tangle are the coal-fired projects proposed by E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Duesseldorf, Germany) and Electrabel SA (Brussels, Belgium) to be developed on the Maasvlakte industrial zone in Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
View Project Report - 73000228
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is a marketing information service specializing in industrial process, energy and financial related markets with products and services ranging from industry news, analytics, forecasting, plant and project databases, as well as multimedia services.
