High efficiency engines to drive London’s ‘Green Energy’ initiative

The British energy company Blue-NG is buying four MAN B&W type 10L35MC-S diesel engines for two small generating stations in Beckton and Southall, in London, where they will be run on bio-liquids. They are intended to supply low-CO2 power to the capital by 2010.

The two-stroke, low-speed engines will be built by MAN Diesel’s Polish licensee, H. Cegielski – Poznan SA. Each engine develops 6.450 MW and has an ISO 3046 efficiency of 48.9 % in a power sector where normal efficiencies are usually in the range 42-47 %.This high thermal efficiency is one of the main reasons for Blue-NG’s choosing the engines.

The plant configuration, known as CHiP (combined heat and intelligent power) will be the first of its kind in the world. The engines’ high temperature waste heat will drive an organic Rankine cycle (ORC) turbine, while low-temperature waste heat will be used in a natural-gas pressure reduction station where the heat energy will drive turbo expanders. The plant’s total net electrical efficiency will therefore peak at over 80 %.

The client, Blue-NG, is a joint venture between the National Grid, the UK’s gas and power-distribution company, and 2OC Ltd, a company that specialises in geothermal energy and natural-gas pressure-reduction station projects.

The first engine is due for delivery in December 2009, with the remaining engines due to follow at three-month intervals.