GE secured an order from RWE Generation for 11 units of its breakthrough LM2500XPRESS power plant technology to build a gas-fired grid reserve plant in Biblis, a municipality in the Southern Hesse region of Germany. GE’s new LM2500XPRESS power plant is built comprising 11 GE LM2500 aero-derivative gas turbines, generators, fuel supply system, grid connection and auxiliary equipment. It is 95% factory assembled into simplified modules for fast and easy site installation. RWE’s new 300 megawatts (MW) plant will be built just south of the company’s current nuclear power plant site in the region. The plant will not be available to the open electricity marketplace; instead, it will only be operated upon the request of system operators to help ensure grid stability with high efficiency.
Roger Miesen, CEO, RWE Generation said: “We are delighted that we were awarded the contract for the Biblis site. The excellent existing infrastructure there and our reliable and flexible concept for the plant have won out. We will thus be able to make an important contribution towards security of supply in Southern Hesse. We have a long-standing relationship with GE and we’re proud to work together to install the world’s first LM2500XPRESS.”
Aman Joshi, Senior Global Sales Director for the Aeroderivative business, GE Gas Power stated: “The use of renewable energy sources is continuously being expanded in many countries around the world, but the grid infrastructure still requires highly efficient gas turbine technology to stabilize and support these variable technologies. The rapidly progressing energy transition presents system operators and energy suppliers with the increasingly difficult task of continuously ensuring the stability of the grid. GE continues to invest in new technologies, such as the LM2500XPRESS power plant, as we consider renewables and gas power complementary. The combination of five-minute fast start with cycling and load-following capabilities is ideal to help support grid stability and we’re excited to bring it to Biblis to help RWE to provide a reliable supply of energy.”
The gas turbine power plant is to be constructed next to the existing Biblis nuclear power plant and is expected to come into operation in late 2022.
