In
the coming years, the coexistence of conventional and emerging energy sources
will be critical as the world drives toward net-zero. Natural gas, abundant and
inexpensive, can serve as a viable bridge fuel to a future where renewables and
e-fuels contribute to the energy landscape. However, the industry must take
aggressive steps to reduce the carbon footprint associated with delivering gas
to destination markets.
Siemens
Energy is committed to helping midstream operators achieve this goal by
leveraging the latest advancements in rotating equipment and digitalization to
reduce emissions and operating costs from pipeline compression stations.
This
was recently illustrated with the start-up of the Grapeland Compressor Station
in Texas. In February 2020, Midcoast Energy, LLC selected Siemens Energy to
supply two SGT-400 mechanically driven RFBB20 compression packages for the
station. This is the first application of the SGT-400
15-megawatt (20,000 horsepower) turbine variant in mechanical drive service in
North America.
With its enhanced DLE combustion, the SGT-400 will comply with applicable North American emissions regulations. Within a challenging 10-month delivery window during a global pandemic, the packages have reached commercial operation. They are expected to increase the CJ Express pipeline’s transmission capacity from the East Texas supply areas to Gulf Coast demand centers to approximately 1 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d).As part of its ongoing commitment to the project’s success, Siemens Energy signed an 8-year long-term program (LTP) with Midcoast Energy. The agreement will cover preventative maintenance for the gas turbine units and the pipeline compressors (i.e., “One Train” Approach).Specific services offered include service exchange, 24/7 technical support, and labor for Level II inspections/activities, such as dry gas seal and bearing changeouts. Additionally, Siemens Energy will provide digitally-enabled solutions, including Remote Diagnostic Services through the MyHealth app, to meet aggressive availability guarantees for both trains -- ensuring maximum uptime and ROI for Midcoast Energy.
Digitalization
provides the key to success in this complex energy environment that is
characterized by an increasingly decarbonized and distributed energy landscape.
It makes interconnected and intelligent solutions for power transmission
systems possible that ensure the reliable and safe supply of power for the
years to come. At Hannover Messe 2021, Siemens Energy presented new digital
power transmission technologies for the development of more intelligent, safer
and even more efficient power grids.
Wind energy is at the center of the transition to a less carbon-intensive and more sustainable energy system. Although the share of renewables in global electricity generation is rising, renewable power as a whole still needs to expand to meet decarbonization targets set by governments around the world. Siemens Energy is committed to driving this potential into real growth for the future of renewable power and offers a whole range of power transmission equipment, grid access solutions and services for the wind industry. To
date Siemens Energy received orders for 21 grid connections with more
than 12 gigawatts of offshore wind and produced more than 4,000 units of
sustainable high-voltage products such as distribution transformers and
switchgear for original equipment manufacturer of wind turbines.
With the commissioning of BorWin3, Siemens has handed over the fifth North Sea grid connection to its customer TenneT. After completion of successful test runs, the German/Dutch grid operator accepted the project. Siemens was responsible for the grid connection system including an onshore converter station. The grid connections HelWin1 and HelWin2, BorWin2, SylWin1, and BorWin3 – for which Siemens supplied all the technology for direct current transmission – are thus now in commercial operation and are transmitting power. Siemens was awarded the contract for BorWin3 in the spring of 2014. Being the fifth North Sea grid connection, it provides power to over a million German households. Siemens won the orders for the grid connections DolWin6 and BorWin5 in July 2017 and August 2020, respectively. They are scheduled to go into operation in 2023 and 2025. A total of about seven million households will be supplied with electricity generated from wind power via these seven links.
Siemens has developed a comprehensive concept for energy systems worldwide – the first such concept that takes into account and brings together not only technology but also the areas of regulation and social engagement. The Energy Value Charter aims to create customized solutions that will empower countries to make their energy systems fit for the future. The concept encompasses suggestions for implementing sustainable power-generation technologies, together with recommendations on how legal frameworks must be adapted to ensure that the full potential of these technologies can be tapped. In addition, the concept specifies options for promoting social engagement, such as work-study programs, as well as for refinancing infrastructure while simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Siemens presented the concept at the 2019 Energy Transition Dialogue in Berlin, in the presence of energy ministers from a range of countries.
Siemens developed the concept to create a global framework for energy solutions for its businesses. With its Energy Value Charter, the company wants to enter into a dialogue with governments in order to shape energy systems in such a way that they provide the basis for economic growth, social engagement and sustainable development.
On January 24, 2018, the most powerful high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transformer began its journey from the transformer factory in Nuremberg, Germany, to China. The transformer will first be transported to the harbor in Nuremberg by special heavy load transporter, where it will be loaded onto a ship. Its journey will take it to Rotterdam via the Main-Danube Canal, and from there it will be shipped to China, where it will arrive after several weeks on the high seas. In July 2016, Siemens received an order to manufacture four transformers of this type. About a year later, the world’s first 1,100 kV transformer was completed and successfully passed the tests in the testing facility. The enormous dimensions of the transformer – 37.5 meters long, 14.4 meters tall, and 12 meters wide – posed a logistical challenge for the team. In operation, the transformer weighs just under 900 tons and its efficiency is well above 99% of the rated power. For the first time, the transformer will enable a high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) transmission with low losses over a record distance of 3,284 kilometers with a transmission capacity of 12 gigawatts. HVDC transformers are part of the converter station that convert alternating current into direct current at the beginning of the transmission line and convert it back again at the end of the line. The conversion from alternating current to direct current helps to transmit energy over long distances with low losses. Transformers are key components of an HVDC line: Thanks to the transformer, the Changji-Guquan project will be able to transmit direct current with a huge 1,110 kilovolts for the first time in the world. The new transformer not only makes the transmission of this record voltage level possible, but it is also the world’s most powerful tested transformer with a capacity of 587 megavoltamperes. Siemens has thus achieved a new dimension in high-voltage direct-current transmission. The HVDC line between Changji and Guquan will be operated by State Grid Corporation (SGCC), a Chinese grid operator. The connection is expected to begin operation in 2019.