Siemens wins contract for 758MW combined-cycle plant in the U.S.

Siemens has been awarded an order for the turnkey supply of the Panda Temple Power Project in Temple, Texas, U.S. The company will supply the combined-cycle power plant (CCPP) in consortium with its partner, Bechtel. The multi-shaft combined-cycle plant will be a Siemens Flex-Plant 30, with a gross installed electrical capacity of 758 MW.

The purchaser for this advanced power plant is Panda Temple Power LLC headquartered in Dallas, Texas. The natural-gas-fired Panda Temple CCPP will be located at the Synergy Industrial Park in Temple, Texas. Siemens will deliver the power island equipment, including two SGT6-5000F gas turbines, one SST6-5000 steam turbine, two SGen6-1000A generators, one SGen6-2000H generator, the SPPA-T3000 instrumentation and control system as well as two Benson heavy duct- fired heat recovery steam generators manufactured by NEM.

Flex-Plant 30 combined-cycle power plants are said to offer high efficiency and operational flexibility, providing the right solution for any duty service. The design features are said to enable fast start, and fast ramping up and down across a large operating window from low plant turn-down to high plant output.

This plant is estimated to be one of the cleanest fossil-fueled plants in the U.S. with carbon monoxide (CO) emissions less than 10 ppm and nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions less than 2.0 ppm. Once completed, the generating station is expected to supply the power needs of approximately 750,000 homes in the Central and North Texas regions. The order volume including a long-term service agreement is approximately USD300 million.

The gas turbines, steam turbine and generators will be manufactured in the Siemens factory in Charlotte, North Carolina. A long-term service agreement has also been signed for the main generation components and Bechtel will be responsible for the engineering and procurement for the balance of the plant, and the installation, construction and commissioning of the facility. The gas turbines for this project are equipped with a Shaping Power feature which enables higher power output on higher temperature days.

Roland Fischer, CEO of the Fossil Power Generation Division at Siemens Energy said, the combined-cycle Flex-Plant 30 is an environmentally friendly solution with additional benefit from a fast start gas turbine that reduces overall plant startup emissions. He said, "Power generation can commence within ten minutes of startup, and full base-load power production in less than one hour. It also will reduce emissions, allow rapid response to changing market conditions, and enable added investment in intermittent renewable and zero-carbon resources."