MHI Thermal Systems Unveils Centrifugal Chiller, Equipment Control System: EC-8

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Thermal Systems (MHI Thermal Systems) launched an updated version of its Ene-Conductor Heat Source Control System. The new EC-8 model, arriving in spring 2025, features advanced control capabilities for up to eight centrifugal chillers and peripheral equipment, such as chilled water pumps, cooling water pumps, and cooling towers. Its energy-saving control functions include:

• Controlling the number of centrifugal chillers
• Controlling the variable flow rate of chilled water
• Cooling water

The EC-8 model supports both the individual pump system and the multiple pump system widely used in large-scale facilities built across Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

More EC-8 Features

The EC-8 control system automatically selects the air conditioning system’s optimal operating point, cutting power consumption by up to approximately 26% and improving overall energy efficiency. Its repeatable system design and installation workload can be minimized, enabling simple integration at existing and upcoming facilities. According to MHI Thermal Systems, the EC-8 can be installed without modifying the current facility for additional energy savings.

Ene-Conductor Heat Source Control System; image credit: MHI Thermal Systems

It uses the BACnet protocol and Modbus to enable real-time communication and information exchange between machines and sensors, improving response time. The system contains fewer signal cables, simplifying construction management.

MHI Thermal Systems News

In late November 2024, Aisan Industry placed an order with MHI Thermal Systems for a large-scale Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (ATES) system to provide air conditioning at its Anjo Plant. The ETI-Z25.HP centrifugal chiller has a cooling capacity of 234 refrigeration tons (RT)—823 kW per unit—and supplies both hot and cold water. This ATES implementation project will begin in winter 2025 and represents MHI Thermal Systems’ first practical application outside the Kansai region.

The ATES System uses gravel and groundwater from deep subsurface aquifers as a large-scale heat storage tank. This energy-efficient method allows the system to:

• Use cold waste heat from winter heating for summer cooling
• Use warm waste heat from summer cooling for winter heating

Using high-efficiency centrifugal chillers and control technologies, such as automatic switching of optimal operating modes, may reduce yearly CO₂ emissions by approximately 50%. The system uses HFO-1233zd refrigerant, which has the lowest global warming potential to minimize its environmental impact. Overall, the system offers energy-saving performance, optimal control technology, and improved operational performance.

And in October, MHI Thermal Systems signed an agreement with Empower to supply large-scale centrifugal chillers for district cooling plants in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Per the agreement, MHI Thermal Systems will deliver 18 advanced chillers, ready for delivery by 2025, with an aggregate cooling capacity of 56,250 RT.

Empower will operate the chillers in three district cooling system plants, supplying chilled water for cooling to residential, commercial, healthcare, educational, and multi-use projects. The agreement also includes a provision enabling Empower to increase the order size, potentially raising the total capacity to 100,000 RT. Delivery will begin sequentially from 2025, bringing Empower’s total number of chillers to 46 units.