Revolutionary Power: GE Energy’s plan to change the future

Produced in Belfort, France, the FlexEfficiency 50 natural gas plant is the first combined cycle plant capable of quickly delivering 510mw – the equivalent energy consumption of more than 500,000 European homes – in a start∞up time of less than 30 minutes, while offering fuel efficiency greater than 61 percent. This breakthrough, flexible technology stabilises the grid during times of reduced energy supply from renewables, and can therefore help to further increase the share of renewables in national power grids.

The most recent international energy projections indicate a long-term rise in global energy demand, which means there is an urgent pressure to modernise existing electricity grids worldwide to cope with the growing share of renewable energy. The grid infrastructure in most EU countries evolved over time to include a balanced distribution of power generation sources and a predictable allocation of main consumers. The rapid addition of renewable generation is likely to lead to an imbalanced situation in some countries due to the intermittent nature of these power sources. GE has found one answer to the question of how to integrate them in a way that ensures steady energy supply.

Balancing the grid, efficiently
This challenge is reinforced by the EU’s targets for 2020, which are putting considerable strain on Europe’s ageing energy grid. EU policy states that renewable energy must contribute 20 percent to our total energy consumption, that greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced by 20 percent and that energy efficiency gains of 20 percent are expected by 2020. Energy efficiency has proven to be the most hotly debated of the three, with the EU still unsure whether to make the targets binding, as is the case with the other targets.

Ricardo Cordoba, GE Energy president for north Africa, Turkey and Pakistan feels that an answer to efficient energy isn’t far away. “At GE, we believe the solution to meeting the efficiency goal of reducing the energy consumption by 20 percent can be found not only on the consumption side, but also by generating energy much more efficiently at the power plant level, the supply side. GE Energy delivers a quarter of the world’s electricity and we have a very clear overview of where efficiency gains can be achieved. Currently, the potential supply side gains, what we call efficient energy, are underdeveloped.”

GE Energy was also the driving force behind the creation of EME² (www.EME2.eu), a European movement of various energy actors to promote the benefits of increased supply side efficiency.

Flexible efficiency
GE’s new FlexEfficiency 50 plant, as part of its wider portfolio of ‘FlexEfficiency’ power generation solutions, offers efficiency and flexibility at the same time. The latest innovation in GE’s combined cycle technology, the plant can start up within minutes when the wind is not blowing and the sun is not shining and can be subsequently turned down when renewable energy is available, meeting power plant operators’ needs for greater operational flexibility.

An energy solution particularly suited for Europe, the plant’s beating heart is also produced in∞house: the 9FB gas turbine, developed using GE’s expertise within the Aerospace industry. The turbine will be manufactured at GE Energy’s European Centre of Excellence for gas turbines in Belfort, France. New turbines will also be tested here: the first foundations for a dedicated test ramp were laid in December last year.
Europe’s energy mix has changed dramatically over the past decade, impacting heavily on plant operations; therefore it was important to recognise the need for a power plant that could deliver the required combination of flexibility and efficiency. Paul Browning, president and CEO Thermal Products for GE Energy, feels that the company now has the lie of the current needs of the power sector: “As our customers seek to increase their use of renewable energy, the challenge of grid stability sharpens. They are under added pressure to achieve higher levels of efficiency and lower emissions for natural gas power plants. The FlexEfficiency 50 plant creates an immense growth opportunity in a new segment for our gas turbine technology and is in lock-step with our commitment to build a cleaner energy future.”

The world’s first truly hybrid plant
GE’s FlexEfficiency approach, although just recently introduced to customers worldwide, has already been selected for use in an innovative power plant project being developed in Turkey by MetCap Energy Investments, a Turkish project developer. The world’s first ‘Integrated Renewables Combined Cycle Power Plant’ (IRCC), located near Karaman in Turkey, takes the FlexEfficiency concept to the next level, including concentrated solar power technology and wind power, turning it into a truly hybrid concept for the future. It can achieve up to over 70 percent efficiency at ‘gas turbine world’ conditions.

Engineers at the plant will be able to seamlessly integrate natural gas, solar thermal power and wind in one single plant, supplying the grid steadily with power by balancing out intermittent production at the plant level. This is made possible through the flexible operation of GE’s next-generation 50Hz 9FB Gas Turbine; a steam turbine, a generator, 22mw of GE wind turbines and 50mw of eSolar concentrated solar thermal tower technology. Rated at 530mw and capable of supplying energy to more than 600,000 homes, the integrated plant is expected to come on line in 2015.

Dr. Celal Metin, chairman of MetCap Energy Investments, confirms GE’s FlexEfficiency approach: “Our projects must simultaneously meet the need for increased energy, environmental responsibility and economic growth, while preserving precious water resources. We evaluated GE’s FlexEfficiency technology with other state-of-the-art alternatives and selected it because it is best aligned with our vision for the future. In addition, to record-setting fuel efficiency, this power plant will have zero liquid discharge, low emissions and a rapid-response, 28 minute start capability.”

The 20-20-20 strategy
The FlexEfficiency 50 plant directly addresses and supports the EU’s 20-20-20 commitment, and it does so with economics in mind, offering lower cost power generation. One FlexEfficiency 50 plant will help avoid around 12,700 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, which is the equivalent of the emissions of more than 6,000 cars on EU roads. Fuel savings of 6,400,000 m3 of natural gas can also be achieved, corresponding to the annual natural gas consumption of over 4,000 EU homes. Much of today’s power generation technology is serving yesterday’s grid.

By responding to and balancing power from renewable sources and efficiently using fuel, this plant can help transform the energy industry by accelerating a wider adoption of renewables and by enhancing the value of cleaner burning natural gas, delivering today’s energy needs and those of the future.