Today, the CHP plant generates up to 174 MW of electrical energy and 200 MW of thermal energy. Once upgraded with two MST050 turbines, with the total output of 56 MW, the plant will produce up to 230 MW of electricity and also more heat for district heating.
In the cogeneration process, the condensation heat that is not used to generate electricity is utilized in the citywide district heating network - thus increasing fuel efficiency.
Producing heat from gas CHP, not coal
By investing to upgrade the CHP, Leipzig’s municipal utility intends to use the additional capacity to reorganize its district heating supply. Currently, a large part of the city’s heat supply depends on the Lippendorf coal-fired power plant, but this is meant to cease operations by end of 2022.
Uwe Lauber, CEO of MAN Energy Solutions said the steam turbines will help Leipzig achieve its sustainability goals set out for local energy supply. Sales manager Lars Schumacher added “the customer’s decision to order from MAN Energy Solutions was made due to the high efficiency and flexibility of our technology.”
To optimize the CHP’s overall efficiency, auxiliary cooling circuits were integrated in the district heating system. Analytics Telemetry Unit boxes, connected to the MAN CEON digital platform, will also be integrated in the turbines. “They enable the customer not only to have a round-the-clock monitoring of the machine operation, but also to receive fast access to remote support from MAN”, Schumacher explained.
Delivery and installation of the steam turbines in Leipzig are scheduled for the first quarter of 2021.