Delivering reliable grid balancing power under supply chain instability

WEC Energy Group is one of the United States’ premier energy companies, serving 4.7 million customers in Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, and Minnesota. They plan to eliminate coal as an energy source by end of 2032 and invest a total of USD 9.1 billion in new wind, solar, and battery storage by 2029.

WEC Energy Group had built two power plants with Wärtsilä reciprocating internal combustion engine (RICE) generators with a combined output of 188 MW that went online in 2019. After a few years of successful operations and positive outcomes with these facilities, Wärtsilä was contracted again by WEC Energy Group to deliver RICE units for a new brownfield power generation facility. The new plant is located at the existing coal-fired Weston Generating Station and utilizes seven Wärtsilä W18V50SG engines, combining for an output of 128 megawatts. The new plant would be used to balance intermittent renewables and provide protection from high volatility in the Midcontinent Interconnection System Operator (MISO) electricity market.

Achieving speed of the construction project while maintaining safety and quality of the new facility were important every step of the way for this project. WEC Energy Group needed to get this generation asset online quickly to meet peak summer energy demand in 2023. Each day past the target in-service date for the plant could have resulted in lost revenue and potential compromised reliability for the grid in Wisconsin. With great collaboration and commitment, the project team succeeded, and the facility entered service on schedule in July of 2023.

With the global supply chain facing unprecedented instability in 2021 and 2022, the project team also faced significant challenges in equipment delivery delays throughout the project’s duration, requiring innovation, creativity, and continuous close collaboration to overcome. Work sequences had to be reviewed constantly and coordinated based on when equipment and materials would be available for installation and integration, which put strain on maintaining productivity and the overall schedule from suffering delays.

The Wärtsilä project team safely supported the execution of an expedited schedule, collaborating closely with WEC Energy Group and Burns & McDonnell project execution teams to achieve commercial operation of the plant on schedule and within the planned budget.

The addition of the new RICE units offers a more sustainable and reliable means for WEC Energy Group to continue to meet rising energy demand with reliable power to balance intermittent renewable energy sources. The project was built with pride and tremendous expertise to operate for decades and serve the ratepayers reliably and efficiently.

Who	WEC Energy Group
What	Weston Generating Station
Where	Wausau, Wisconsin, USA
How	7 x W18V50SG

This is what we achieved

128

MW of electrical output to support local power grid.

W18V50SG engines balancing renewables and providing stability to the MISO electricity market.

Quick start, very flexible, modular gas plants really suited our needs. Wärtsilä has this track record globally as well as a very strong U.S. presence. We’re again very satisfied with the RICE technology which was delivered on-time and on-budget. The units have met our needs, and we now have 17 Wärtsilä units in our fleet with more planned.
These Wärtsilä machines, with their flexibility, modularity and quick ramping are an important tool for us as we work towards meeting our environmental goals and continue to serve our customers with reliable and affordable energy.

- Dan Krueger, Executive Vice President of Infrastructure and Generation Planning at WEC Energy Group

Wärtsilä has consistently proven to be an excellent technology provider and collaborator for the utility customers we serve, delivering outstanding performance, reliability, and operational flexibility. We’ve successfully completed more than 20 Wärtsilä projects across the U.S., earning the trust of major repeat clients like WEC Energy Group. We look forward to serving more customers with their technology in the future.
- Tim Carey, reciprocating engine Business Manager at Burns & McDonnell

Image credit, WEC Energy Group.

How we did it

Challenge

Unexpected equipment delivery delays due to global pandemic
Rising energy demand in region
Help WEC reduce emissions, fuel consumption & costs
Inherent fluctuations from intermittent solar and wind energy sources that demanded a stabilizing energy resource

Solution

Thorough and persistent vendor surveillance to expedite installation plans and recover schedules
Close collaboration with WEC and Burns & McDonnell to ensure project execution
Wärtsilä’s 50SG engines provide balancing power with future-proof design to run on sustainable fuels

Benefit

Commercial operation of the plant completed on schedule and on budget
Work planned for two months completed in one due to the efficiencies in planning and added night shift work
More sustainable & reliable solution to meet rising energy demand and balance intermittent renewables

Questions? Contact us

The main details

Customer	WEC Energy Group
Type	Wärtsilä 50SG flexible baseload power plant
Where	Wausau, Wisconsin, USA
Total output	128 MW
Fuel	Natural gas
Scope	Engineering & equipment (EEQ)
Delivery	July 2023