CONTAINERIZED

7.8 MW POWER PLANT CONCEPT

APPLICATION CASE STUDIES FOR A PRE-ENGINEERED
GAS TURBINE CHP PLANT

Dr. Marcus Hecken

Harald Dichtl

Siemens Power Generation (PG), Germany

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Abstract

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) is a highly efficient way to generate power and heat. By
linking a gas turbine with a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) up to 90% of the fuel
energy can be converted into electric power and useful heat. This reduces Greenhouse Gas
(GHG) emissions in many cases by more than 30%.

Siemens Power Generation has developed a CHP plant concept for 5-13 MW gas turbines in
order to reflect the requirements of this market segment. In the first stage the development has
been based on the Siemens SGT-300 industrial gas turbine which is designed for highly
efficient combined heat and power generation. A benchmark with other industrial goods has
shown potential improvements by packaging the power plant systems into modular units.
These modules will be pre-engineered and packaged into containers which will only be
interconnected on the construction site.

Investigations have been made as to how to improve the economic value for the end user of
such a plant. Different aspects considering construction and erection time, lifecycle cost and
operational flexibility have been analyzed. This has formed the basis for the product
specification of the containerized power plant.

This paper will discuss this new power plant concept by means of case studies for the main
CHP applications. The main results of the investigation will be shown.

Keywords:

CHP, Cogeneration, Power Generation, Process Steam, Industrial Application, Siemens Gas
Turbine, Economic Evaluation

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1. Introduction

Increasing energy demands worldwide and simultaneous decreasing of energy resources

cause a rise of fuel prices on international resource markets. As a result of these developments
electricity prices have soared about 80% since 2004 [1]. The markets for fossil energy
resources seem to establish a clear medium-term tendency of rising prices.

Based on the Kyoto Convention an emission trading system has been established and will
influence future power plant development. Driven by the need to reduce emissions as well as
save fossil resources, power plant development has been focusing on designing highly
efficient facilities.

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) systems realize these requirements and generate both
process steam and electricity, especially for industrial applications, in an efficient way. By
linking a gas turbine with a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) up to 90% of the fuel
energy can be converted into electric power and useful heat.

Based on these economical and ecological requirements, Siemens Power Generation has
developed a containerized CHP plant concept for 7.5 MW gas turbines. All components have
been pre-designed and pre-engineered.

2. Objective

This paper will present the containerized power plant SSC-300 Cogen concept as a
solution realizing high fuel utility ratios at economic costs. Based on various Life Cycle Cost
(LCC) calculations the profitability of CHP facilities for industrial applications will be
presented. The basic concept of the Siemens SSC-300 Cogen power plant will be shown.

3. Combined Heat and Power generation

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) generation realizes the simultaneous production of
electric power and heat. The basic element of a CHP solution is a combustion device -
predominately a gas turbine- driving an electric generator. The exhaust gases are utilized
within a Heat Recovery Boiler in order to produce process steam or hot water. A drawing
indicating the basic principles is shown in fig. 1, see below.

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 17 % Exhaust Gas

HRSG
50 %
Process Steam
Gas
Turbine
Generator
Air
33 %
Electric Power

Fuel Gas
100 %

Fig. 1: Basic Concept of a Combined Heat and Power System (CHP)

In a standard CHP system the gas turbine generator transforms about 33% of the fuel into
electricity. Approximately 50% of the input energy is consumed for process steam or warm
water production. The exhaust losses are about 17% but might be reduced, depending on
ambient or process steam conditions.

Based on the principles explained above, CHP technology can be employed by different types
of industrial users. This electricity / steam generating system can be adopted for supplying
energy-intensive applications such as refineries, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, pulp and
paper, or steel industries. The process steam might be used for running thermal processes.

Cogeneration offers a number of benefits as listed below.

Environmental Benefits
The global emphasis on reducing greenhouse gas emissions puts cogeneration systems in a
strong position for combined heat and power production due to its improved fuel utility ratio,
i.e. the specific amount of emissions in relation to usable energy output. In addition,

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reasonably high fuel utility ratios contribute to saving fossil energy resources to a
considerably extent.

Economic Benefit
As will be shown in chapter. 4 the cost savings of CHP applications might be very attractive
compared to purchasing steam and electricity. Considering increasing energy prices on global
markets, the highly efficient CHP solution might give a better profitability than external
supply.

Improving Power Autonomy

CHP unites usually are located near to the production facility. The power plant and the
production sites are linked closely together. The industrial user is not dependent on an
external supplier and can act more flexibly on process load changes.

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4. Economic Evaluation of Cogeneration Processes - Case Study

In order to indicate the benefit for employing cogeneration (CHP) power plants a
yearly-cost analysis will be presented. For comparison reasons an industrial user will be
defined. The assumptions for the electrical power and steam demand are listed below.

Boundary Conditions and Assumptions

Unit Value
Average Electric Power demand kWel 7,500
Average Steam demand t/h 18.5
MWth 12.5
Process Steam Pressure bara 17
Process Steam Temperature Saturated Steam
Operation Period per year h/a 8760
Operation Mode Base Load
Table 1: General Boundary Conditions

Based on these boundary conditions two different cases might be considered. These scenarios
form a general comparison between buying power or producing autonomously.

Case 1: Reference:
Buying electric power from a supplier & producing process steam from a small fired boiler
In the first scenario electricity will be provided by an external power supplier. The steam for
the industrial application is produced by a small boiler. These conditions define the reference
case.

The process steam is generated at an estimated rate of about 30 /MWh including fuel,
operation, and maintenance costs. The value is based on an average thermal efficiency of 85%
and a fuel purchase price 7 /GJ [2].

Case 2: CHP Power Plant

Generating process steam & electric power in a CHP facility
In scenario 2 a cogeneration system will replace the existing boiler for steam generation and
electricity purchases. Electric power and steam are generated by a small cogeneration power
plant based on all the performance values listed in the table below. The existing boiler might
be used as a back-up steam generator.

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Due to power plant outages for maintenance and service it might be necessary to buy electric
power temporarily from a supplier. Additionally process steam needs to be generated
elsewhere. The estimated time period for power plant failures is assumed to be around 500h
per year.

The economic calculations are based on all values listed in the table below.

Case 1 Reference Unit Comments

Price for purchasing electric power /MWh 73 [3], Price also includes
suppliers surcharges
Electric power: Escalation rate per year % 2
Average steam generation costs with /MWh 30 average thermal efficiency
conventional boiler 85%
Steam generation costs % 2
Escalation rate per year
Fuel Price /GJ 7
Fuel Price: Escalation rate per year % 2
Operation Period per year h/a 8760
Table 2: Boundary Conditions Case 1

Case 2 CHP Unit Comments

Fuel Price /GJ 7
Fuel Price: Escalation rate per year % 2
Fuel input kWth 25,400 Fuel utility ratio about 84%
Price for purchasing electric power in case of /MWh 95
power plant outages
Electric power: Escalation rate per year % 2
Estimated time of power plant outages h/a 500
Maintenance costs /MWh 4.5
Miscellaneous costs (i.e. personnel, ) k/a 200
per year
Plant operation period per year h/a 8260

Equity ratio % 100 debt payments not

considered, investment will
be paid completely at project
start
Table 3: Boundary Conditions Case 2

These values seem to be a good estimation for the German power generation market but in
principle should be valid for all other European countries as well. Emission trading provides
the operation of a cogeneration power plant with some additional benefits. However, since the
domestic legislation is not uniform for all European countries, the emission trading has not

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been taken into consideration for these calculations. Probable subsidies for cogeneration
power generation are also disregarded.

Results
The annual costs for each case are shown in fig. 2 below.

10,000
Costs per year Costs for Outages
k (i.e. power purchase)

8,000
Fixed Costs
Process =1,900 k (i.e. personnel)
steam
6,000

Maintenance
4,000
Electric
Power
Fuel
2,000

Case 1 - reference Case 2 - CHP

Fig. 2: Comparison: Costs per year

In the reference case (Case 1) only two main cost groups have been considered - expenses for
generating process steam and charges for purchasing electricity. These expenses sum up to an
overall value of about 8 million/year.

In Case 2 a Cogeneration power plant will be employed. Fuel will form the major portion of
the overall expenses. Additionally maintenance costs and other fixed payments (i.e.
personnel, insurances) have been taken into considation. In the event of outages, electricity
needs to be bought from a supplier. Steam will also be provided either from an external
source or by an existing back-up steam boiler. These costs are evaluated at. 0.5 million
annually.

The annual costs savings of operating a CHP system compared to external electricity supply
are about 1.9 million.

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To indicate the economic benefit for an extended time period the yearly expenses have been
accumulated. The results are shown in fig. 3.

100

mil./a
Costs savings:
80 18.5 mil
after 10 years of operation

60

Case 1-Reference
40

Case 2-CHP
20

Cost Accumulation
0 2 4 6 8 10
Year of Operation

Fig. 3: Comparison: Cost Accumulation

Due to lower annual costs Case 2 reveals an economic benefit of about 18.5 million after 10
years operation time. Regarding initial investments the pay-off period seems to be between
about 3 to 5 years.

5. Siemens Containerized CHP Concept

Based on the given considerations, Siemens is developing a small containerized power plant
for industrial applications. The target is to provide a Cogeneration power plant for industrial
applications which supplies the user with electric power as well as process steam. The main
technical data of the SSC-300 Cogen are given in table 4, see below.

SSC-300 Cogen, technical data

Electric Output 7.5 MWel
Process Steam Output 12.5 MWth
18.5 t/h, 13-22 bara
Fuel Utility Ratio 81 %

Table. 4: SSC-300 Cogen, technical data

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Technical Concept Description
Generating process steam & electric power in a CHP facility

The SSC-300 Cogen design has been based on the SSC-300 gas turbine (formerly named
Tempest). In a Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG) the process steam will be generated
on a slightly superheated level. The Balance of Plant components, the electrical,
instrumentation, and control units are enclosed within different containers. A drawing of the
general concept is shown in fig. 4, below.

Balance of
Plant

I&C

Gas Turbine
SGT-300

HRSG

Fig. 4: SSC-300 Cogen, Containerized Concept

For generating power and steam in a most efficient way the investment and delivery periods
need to be optimized. Therefore the different units have been pre-designed and pre-engineered
in order to reduce the overall project time.

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The SSC-300 Gas Turbine will be delivered in a packaged arrangement. This compact design
reduces site time for erection and commissioning.

The Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG) will be pre-designed at a very advanced level.
Different options such as by-pass stack may be added if necessary. Due to a high degree of
pre-fabrication the HRSG will be delivered only in a few pieces and assembled quickly on
site.

In order to optimize costs for the auxiliary systems all units are located in containers. The
containers are a standardized size can be transported easily. As for the HRSG, the auxiliaries
are at an advanced stage of pre-design and pre-engineering. The different systems are split
into logical units and located in these containers. For instance, the deaerator and control room
are attached to separated boxes.

This containerized and modular design forms a compact system. The units are designed to be
pre-fabricated and assembled on site quickly.

Fig. 5: SSC-300 Cogen, Containerized Concept

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Advantages and Characteristics of the SSC-300 Cogen Concept
The SCC-300 has been developed for industrial applications with steam and electricity
demand. For common industrial applications power generation is only a necessity in order to
supply the production lines. Therefore the SSC-300 has been designed as simply and robustly
as possible.

Besides easy handling and robust construction, the economic benefit is a main advantage. Due
to the thermodynamic design an overall fuel utility ratio of about 81 % has been realized, with
resulting low specific fuel costs. Furthermore, due to these efficiency values, specific
emissions will be reduced. For the economic evaluation in chapter 4 neither emission trading
nor subsidies have been taken into account. These issues might also significantly increase the
economic advantages for combined heat and power systems.

6. Conclusion

Combined Heat and Power systems (CHP) generate process steam as well as electricity,
especially for industrial applications, in an efficient way. By linking a gas turbine with a heat
recovery steam generator (HRSG) up to 90% of the fuel energy can be converted into electric
power and usable heat.

Siemens Power Generation has developed the containerized SSC-300 Cogen Power Plant
system for such applications. The basic concept has been presented and discussed in detail.
Based on a Life Cycle Cost calculation the profitability of the SSC-300 has been investigated
and the economic attractiveness shown.

7. References

[1] VIK Verband der industriellen Energie- und Kraftwirtschaft e.V.: Strompreisindex
[2] APX group, fuel price February, 28th, 2006, see also www.apx.nl
[3] EEX-European Energy exchange, electricity price February 28th, 2006, www.eex.de

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