POWER September 2015 - 30

TOP PLANTS
POWER POINTS
Winning Attributes
World's largest combustion
engine power plant
Superior, real-time fuel flexibility
Superior operating flexibility
" The readiness to use different fuels was
essential for us, and Wärtsilä's engines are
the optimal technology for this, " said Taemin
Kim, administration manager of AAEPC.
The engines operate on the lean-burn principle.
Lean combustion enables a high compression
ratio, which in turn increases engine
efficiency, reduces peak temperatures, and
therefore also reduces NOx
emissions. The
engines are reported to operate at up to 47.3%
electrical efficiency in open cycle mode.
The benefit to the local power grid is provided
by the plant's load-following capability.
Koul noted that combined cycle gas turbines
operate much more efficiently at high loads;
efficiency is greatly reduced when they are
forced to cycle. However, Wärtsilä's internal
combustion engine technology is ideally suited
for variable conditions (Figure 1). For a
given total plant load, you simply operate as
many individual generating sets as required
at their optimal efficiency.
" We call them flexible baseload plants, because
they can run in baseload, they can run
in peaking, they can run intermediate, they
can run in any fashion that one wants to operate
them, " Koul said.
Both the gas admission and pilot fuel injection
are electronically controlled. In addition,
the engine functions are controlled by
an advanced automation system (Figure 2)
that allows optimal running conditions to be
set, independent of the ambient conditions or
2. Individual control. A plant worker observes
operating parameters indicated on the
panel for genset 31. Courtesy: Wärtsilä Corp.
1. A flexible grid-balancing tool. This graph shows the average daily load demand in
each of the 12 months of 2014. Since IPP3 entered service, it and its smaller sister plant, IPP4,
have been capturing much of the daily peak demand. Source: NEPCO
■ IPP3 ■ IPP4 ■ Open cycle gas turbine ■ Combined cycle gas turbine ■ Steam
3,000
2,500
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0 (MW)
Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec.
fuel type. Wärtsilä's " Smart Power Generation "
is said to combine the features of fuel
flexibility, operational flexibility, and high
efficiency to provide a sustainable, reliable,
and affordable energy infrastructure.
Accommodating Changing Power
Needs
When IPP3 was first envisioned, the plant
was expected to cover Jordan's sharp daily
peaks in electricity demand. With 38 engines,
22 were expected to run at about 60% capacity
factors, while the other 16 were projected
to operate at 40% capacity factors. Oil prices
were very high when the project was awarded,
so LNG was expected to be the primary
fuel used by the plant.
Although the entire project took only 24
months to construct following receipt of the
Limited Notice to Proceed, circumstances
have changed dramatically since planning
began. The price of oil has decreased considerably,
and the availability of natural gas
is currently very limited in Jordan. For that
reason, the plant is not only running on HFO,
but it is also being used essentially as a baseload
unit.
" They are running 80% of the time, but
they are still doing the load following. They
are still stopping at night and starting up
in the morning to meet the load demand, "
Koul said.
Koul mentioned that Jordan has a contract
with Royal Dutch Shell to supply LNG, so
when gas is available the plant will switch
fuels. Although HFO remains cheaper than
LNG, the plant must operate a de-NOx system
when using HFO, which is not required
with the cleaner-burning gas, so the total operating
cost for LNG is less.
The plant is also designed to support future
power needs. Jordan has grand plans for its
renewable energy sector. The country is seeking
to get 10% of its power from renewables
by 2020, with capacity targets of 600 MW of
solar and 1,200 MW of wind. IPP3 offers the
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fast-reacting backup capacity needed to balance
these variable sources.
Speaking during IPP3's inauguration ceremony
on April 29, 2015, Prime Minister Abdullah
Ensour said, " This 573-MW peaking
power plant is an important component of the
government's strategy to meet growing demand,
and in addition to providing vital peak
power capacity, the project prepares the grid
for future deployment of large quantities of
intermittent renewable energy. "
" The stakeholders in Jordan are extremely
happy with the plant because they
see this plant as being able to mitigate the
disturbances caused by renewables in the
system, " Koul said. It's not a new concept.
Within the past 10 years, Wärtsilä has supplied
several power plants throughout the
world dedicated to wind power balancing,
including in the U.S.
The fact that the plant uses virtually no
water is also a big benefit for the arid country.
The engines have closed circuit cooling
systems with adequately sized radiators to
accommodate the temperatures experienced
in Amman, which are rarely above 97F.
Other Hurdles Overcome
Jordan's environmental policies required
some modification prior to construction
of the plant, and Wärtsilä worked with the
Electricity Regulatory Commission to ensure
International Finance Corp. guidelines
were adopted. There were also some concerns
aired by lenders about Jordan's location.
Although it is in the midst of a lot of
turmoil, the country has been able to maintain
reasonable stability. The World Bank
forecasts Jordan's gross domestic product
growth rate will be 3.5% this year, 3.9% in
2016, and 4.0% in 2017. In the end, investor
concerns were allayed, the project was able
to move forward, and the results have more
than met expectations. ■
-Aaron Larson is a POWER associate
editor.
POWER | September 2015
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