By 2030, all district heating in Gothenburg, Sweden will ideally be produced by renewable or recovered energy sources. With this in mind, Göteborg Energi and Siemens enter a cooperation agreement to test state-of-the-art gas turbine technology to enable the operation of renewable fuels in the Rya combined heat and power (CHP) plant, which is today powered by natural gas, according to Siemens.
As a first step, an SGT-800 test turbine has been installed at the Rya combined heat and power plant (CHP) for the validation of 3D printed burners. This would allow for testing of different fossil-free fuels in the plant. The production of gas turbine burners using additive manufacturing (AM) makes a decisive contribution to accelerating the research and development process for new technologies that contribute to a greener energy supply, according to Siemens.
Recently, a team within Siemens Gas & Power initiated the development of a new accelerated validation process for new technologies and components. This process is already working in the Rya CHP plant. The special test engine is installed at the plant to support new developments.
“The Rya CHP plant plays an important role in Gothenburg's electricity supply,” says Alf Engqvist, CEO of Göteborg Energi. “Working together with Siemens, we want to explore the possibilities for the conversion of both electric power and heat production as pieces of the puzzle in our work for fossil-free energy independence.”
Converting a coal power plant into a modern gas-fired combined cycle power plant, such as the Rya CHP plant in Gothenburg, can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about two-thirds, according to Siemens. By co-burning natural gas with an increasing share of hydrogen or biofuel, emissions can then be further reduced gradually.
“In our collaboration with Göteborg Energi we see the possibility to verify the viability of several different renewable fuels, such as hydrogen, on a larger scale, first in Sweden and then in other parts of the world,” says Thorbjoern Fors, CEO Siemens Distributed Generation and Oil & Gas Services business. “Our goal is to run the SGT-600, -700 and -800 gas turbine combustors 100%fossil free, for example with hydrogen, in the near future. This is a unique cooperation between Siemens and a customer that can demonstrate the varied possibilities for sustainable and cost-effective fuels as our industry and societies look to reduce carbon emissions around the world.”
For more information, visit: www.siemens.com
