Converting power plants to operate on fuels other than they were originally designed for provides the plant owner with both environmental and financial benefits. This growing trend is demonstrated by a captive power plant in Lahore, Pakistan, which Wärtsilä is converting for dual-fuel (DF) operation. The conversion is scheduled for completion in the early part of 2005.
The power plant, owned by Century Power Generation Ltd., supplies power to one of the largest paper and board mills in Pakistan. Century Power Generation is a subsidiary of Century Paper & Board Mills Ltd, which owns the mill close to Lahore.
The DF conversion will provide Century Power Generation with both business and operational benefits that include a good payback time, lower fuel costs and cleaner emissions. The project scope includes the DF conversion of three Wärtsilä 12V32 heavy fuel oil (HFO) engines with an output of 4050 kWe each, plus a maintenance contract for three years.
Fuel flexibility and high efficiency are the main advantages of the DF technology. A DF engine is able to run on two different types of fuel, liquid (LFO/HFO) and gas. A micro pilot injection system injects a very small amount of liquid fuel when the engine is operating in gas mode (Otto process). The micro pilot system is of the common rail type, which allows for very small injection amounts, meeting very stringent emission regulations. A conventional injection system is used when the engine is run on liquid fuel (Diesel process).
The first converted engine will be handed over to Century Power towards the end of January 2005; the remaining two engines will be handed over in April and May 2005. This DF conversion is the first of this magnitude in Wärtsilä.
Century Power Generation and Wärtsilä have worked together for many years. The original power plant, supplied by Wärtsilä, has been supplying power to Century Paper & Board Mills since it was commissioned in 1996. Wärtsilä has also had a maintenance contract with Century Power Generation since 1996.
In this DF conversion, both the customer and the market will benefit as demand is booming in Pakistan for gas- and dual-fuel engines. This trend towards conversions is due to the growing availability of gas and its low price compared to HFO. With gas being a cleaner fuel the government is encouraging gas-based power generation. Power companies are either replacing HFO engines with gas or DF engines or will be converting their HFO engines to gas or DF mode.
Throughout Pakistan gas has been readily available for a long time. The gas is low in price with different tariffs for commercial, industrial and domestic consumers. In recent years much work has been done in the gas exploration sector to good effect. At the same time, gas distribution companies have been working on enhancing and upgrading Pakistan’s gas distribution networks.
As this will be Century Power Generation’s first gas-fired power plant, the project planning included a visit to a DF power plant in Denmark. The customer was able to see first-hand the benefits of a gas-engine power plant and to realise that gas engines were the best power solution for them.
For more information, please contact:
Dan Pettersson
Manager, Marketing Communications
Wärtsilä Corporation; Service
Direct tel: +358 10 709 2214
Direct fax: +358 10 709 2422
e-mail: dan.pettersson@wartsila.com
Yvonne Rönn
Public Relations Manager, Power Plants
Wärtsilä Corporation
Direct tel: +358 10 709 1456
Direct fax: +358 10 709 1425
e-mail: yvonne.ronn@wartsila.com
Notes to the editor:
Wärtsilä is The Ship Power Supplier for builders, owners and operators of vessels and offshore installations. We are the only company with a global service network to take complete care of customers’ ship machinery at every lifecycle stage. Wärtsilä is a leading provider of power plants, operation and lifetime care services in decentralized power generation.
With a worldwide network of 130 offices and workshops in 60 countries providing a service workforce of some 6000 persons, Wärtsilä is able to provide the best possible support for system solutions, equipment maintenance, on-time deliveries and even plant operation.
Owners receive measurable benefits such as; optimized availability and performance, productivity gains, reduced cost and above all an assurance that their installation is being serviced by an experienced and proven provider.
For more information on Wärtsilä, please visit our website at www.wartsila.com
