Aalborg CSP &Sojitz Corporation to share CSP experience in India

Pre-qualification of technology providersfor the upcoming 2 x 50MW concentrated solar power (CSP) projects in India must focus on innovative solutions with high performance guarantee to meet cost competitiveness criteria– suggest Aalborg CSP &Sojitz Corporation based on their local market knowledge and extensive experience with CSP power plants worldwide.

 

As the CSP market is getting ready for Phase II of the Indian Government’s National Solar Mission,cost reduction is one of the key issues capturing the stakeholders’ interest. Even though India is among the lowest solar tariff destinations worldwide, the CSP market is challenged by the fast maturing PV technologies.

 

“As cost competitiveness is one of the key requirements of the two pilot plant tenders, we expect value-adding technological innovations to be prioritized as they are fundamentally designed to optimise system lifetime and consequently to improve levelized cost of energy (LCOE) of CSP plants. New technologies are,however,typically associated with high performance risk. CSP sub-contractors must therefore possess proven track records to showcase performance guarantee and reliability” – says Svante Bundgaard, CEO of Aalborg CSP.

 

SGS3: increased performance, higher availability:

 

Aalborg CSP &Sojitz Corporation have delivered two steam generation systems in Phase I with the commissioned Godawari 50+MW plant being among them. The plant relies on the optimised Aalborg CSP SGS3 technology for steam generation systems that won international recognition (Supplier and Technology Award) in 2013 due to the operational benefits it provides.

 

The Aalborg CSP steam generator technology isdeveloped based on traditional boiler principles.Aside from complying with standard technical specifications, the SGS3 systemis designed to carry high bankability potential.This state-of-the-art boiler technology eliminates leakages and thereby reduces downtime throughout the lifetime of the system, which is backed by a 5 years non-leakage guarantee. By reducing downtime - productivity, electricity earning and the general payback time of the power plant are greatly improved. The SGS3 line is further optimised to guarantee a high gradient of up to 9°C/min, allowing a rapid ramp-up every morning and after transient clouds. This can ensure more than 30 minutes extra operation on a normal 9 hour day, thereby increasing energy production by 5% and increasing daily revenue accordingly.These two main design elements together reduce LCOE of CSP plants by at least 5%, but in some cases up to 10%.

 

"When choosing the Aalborg CSP steam generation system, the most important factor for us was the header and coil design providing our plant with a very high reliability and high gradient performance, which is a key issue seen in previous CSP installations” – said Mr. JP Tiwari , Project Director of Godawari Green Energy Limited.