"For Elering, the specific technology was not so relevant. We had end results that needed to be met and Wärtsilä's engines simply offered an unrivaled solution."
-Ilo Toom, Project Manager at Kiisa for Elering

PAINT IT BLACK? NOT IN ESTONIA

Elering, the Estonian transmission system operator, is responsible for managing the Estonian electrical grid. A constant, real-time balance between supply and demand is an absolute must to keep the grid running and the power reaching customers without frequency deviations.

In 2010 Elering decided to build new reserve capacity, to provide emergency supply for the country in case of a blackout. The choice of Wärtsilä as the supplier was by no means accidental. Our technology was chosen over three competing bids based on gas turbine technology, because ours was the only one capable of meeting the strict requirements for the plant: not only must the emergency power plant be able to start in a scenario where all power from the grid has been completely lost, but it must also reach 100% load in less than 10 minutes.

The two units that form the Elering Kiisa power plant – which is fully automated and will require no on-site personnel – are also flexible and able to adapt to an uncertain future in the fuel markets. The generating sets are based on state-of-the-art Wärtsilä 20V34DF engines that primarily operate on natural gas but are comfortable with switching to light fuel oil as a back-up.

Read the full story here (pdf)!