Malaysian Generator - With Power Boost - Fast Delivery Under Budget

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Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). With power augmentation, in the form of water injection, the newly commissioned 650 MW Perlis natural gas fired combined cycle power plant in Malaysia can reach an output of 675 MW. Liquid fuel can also be used to kick in the power boost.

Sited on the coast near the Thai border south of Kuala Perlis in northwest Malaysia the project utilizes three Alstom GT13E2 gas turbines (NYSE:ALS) (Paris, France) exhausting through dual pressure heat recovery steam generators (HRSGs). These provide steam to a common dual pressure steam turbine.

Consulting firm Sinclair Knight Merz (SKM) (Wellington, New Zealand) carried out the project management and owner's engineer role on behalf of Teknologi Tenaga Perlis Consortium (TTPC). The project was delivered within a fast 21 months of financial close and came in under budget. The consultant company arranged an effective acceleration contract to bring the gas to site on time and managed the interactions with the fuel supplier, electricity off-taker and all the regulatory bodies with jurisdiction over the project. The fast delivery ensured that TTPC was able to sustain its agency ratings and thus receive real financial benefit.

Natural gas is provided by Petronas, the state energy company, through a 25 kilometer, 18-inch gas lateral pipe system. Fresh water is drawn from a nearby canal and treated before delivery to the project site.

The engineer, procure and construct (EPC) contract with Alstom included a 132 kV and 275 kV switchyard, which was handed over to Tenaga National Berhad (TNB) the national power utility under the terms of the power purchase agreement upon completion. All auxiliaries, cooling towers, black start diesel generators, buildings, workshop and store, along with the balance of plant were also included.

Around 17 kilometers of 275 kV double circuit transmission line was required to connect the Perlis power plant to TNB's 132 kV system. Two short double circuit transmission lines connected the power plant to TNB's 132 kV system.

In 2002, SKM played the project management role in the delivery of the Kulim combined cycle power plant project which was Malaysia's first independent power utility. The 225 MW CCGT, and a dedicated power distribution system, were constructed within the Hi Tech Park franchise area.