Challenges
- Need to ensure uninterrupted supply of power for major chemical facility
- Uncertain natural gas quality and pipeline supply pressure
- Firm project deadline despite multiple change orders, customs delays
Background
During the early planning stages of a large-scale polyethylene plant, the Egyptian Ethylene and Derivatives Company (ETHYDCO) – the country’s largest public/government company – considered procuring electrical power from a nearby refinery. That plan, however, was scrapped at a late stage of project development, putting ETHYDCO at risk of having a completed chemical facility without a supporting power plant or connection to the grid. In 2015, ETHYDCO selected APR Energy to provide an interim, fast-track power solution using its state-of-the-art mobile gas turbines until a contemplated 70MW combined-cycle gas turbine plant can be constructed.
Solution
APR Energy’s turnkey solution features three GE aeroderivative mobile dual-fuel turbines running on clean-burning natural gas, together with the associated balance of plant. As standard with its full-service package, APR Energy’s contract includes design, installation and commissioning work for the plant, as well as managing operation and maintenance. While the chemical facility requires approximately 30MW of generating capacity from the turbines – which have an individual ISO rating of 20-25MW – ETHYDCO requested that APR Energy operate three turbines simultaneously to provide the redundant capacity to ensure uninterrupted power. The project also required APR Energy’s engineers to design customized filtration and gas compression solutions – patents pending – to enable the turbines to run on the local supply of natural gas and to accommodate pipeline gas compression of just 70-80 psi. Despite numerous changes by the customer and lengthy delays of critical equipment coming through customs, APR Energy successfully completed the plant within the required 90-day timeframe.