Siemens Energy to build combined cycle power plant

Siemens Energy announced it will build a combined cycle power plant on a turnkey basis in Ostiglia in Lombardy.

The plant will make a significant contribution to reducing CO2 emissions in Italy, thanks to its high efficiency and low CO2 emissions compared with coal- or older gas-fired power plants, the company said. It will also be capable of reliably balancing the fluctuating feed-in from renewables like wind and solar power plants to the grid.

Siemens Energy will supply an SGT5-9000HL gas turbine and other equipment for a combined-cycle power plant in Ostiglia, Italy. (Photo: Siemens Energy)

The power plant is designed as a multi-shaft unit with the gas and steam turbines each driving their own generator. Siemens Energy’s scope of supply includes an SGT5-9000HL gas turbine, an SGen5-3000W gas turbine generator, an SST5-5000 steam turbine, an SGen5-1200A steam turbine generator, a heat-recovery steam generator, and the T3000 control system. The company will also provide long-term services for the plant’s core components.

The project is being executed in a consortium with Italian engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) companies Fata S.p.A. and Demont s.r.l. The utility EP Produzione S.p.A. is owner and operator of the plant.

The power plant will use the HL-class gas turbine technology from Siemens Energy which the company said enables maximum utilization of natural gas and a high degree of flexibility in operation. The unit is designed to be fired with up to 30% hydrogen in addition to natural gas in the future. The installed electrical output will be 880 MW, which is sufficient to supply more than half a million Italian households with electricity. Completion is scheduled for spring 2025.

Thanks to an air-cooled condenser (ACC), it’s not necessary to draw water from the nearby River Po to cool the power plant, Siemens Energy said. This is a significant benefit for the local environment and an important factor for the reliable operation of the plant. In addition to the ACC, Siemens Energy said nitrogen oxide emissions levels (below 10 mg/Nm3), and a broad, flexible operating range accompanied by minimized fuel consumption ensure that the new power plant in Ostiglia sets benchmarks with regards to sustainability and environmental protection.

“Our HL gas turbine technology will make a very decisive contribution to the success of the energy transition in Italy and all over the world,” said Karim Amin, member of the Executive Board of Siemens Energy. “We need highly efficient and flexible gas-fired power plants in the energy mix to ramp up generation capacity to bridge the intermittence of renewables. Furthermore, our gas turbines can be operated with a mix of natural gas and green hydrogen, which will be an important feature of sustainable energy in the future.”

“The new unit is a state-of-the-art project, providing a positive future perspective to the Ostiglia industrial site, securing investment and jobs, and supporting the energy transitions, that for at least two decades will need gas power generation aside of increasing renewables and storage facilities” said Luca Alippi, CEO of EP Produzione. “As the system needs gas to power generation, more than ever current times highlight the need of very efficient plant, utilizing gas at the best with the lowest possible emissions. We are pleased to implement such an investment, as well as of the fact that the project will additionally include improvement on the existing units.”