Power reliability enhanced in St. Petersburg’s historic center
The historic center of St. Petersburg was switched over today from obsolete power equipment to new facilities of the Central CHPP’s Power Plant No. 1. The switchover was performed during the annual General Shareholders Meeting of Gazprom.
A teleconference was held between the Meeting participants and Power Plant No. 1, with Denis Fyodorov, Director General of Gazprom Energoholding, at the Plant’s premises.
From now onward, the State Hermitage Museum, the Russian Museum, the Alexandrinsky and Mikhailovsky Theaters, and other cultural heritage sites will receive power through a new supply architecture with a high-performance 100 MW gas turbine CHPP and a state-of-the-art 110 kV switchgear station.
The new equipment helps not only considerably improve the reliability of power supplies, but also broaden opportunities for reaching new consumers.
Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, congratulated Gazprom’s shareholders and the employees of Gazprom Group’s generating companies on the successful implementation of the project.
Background
The Central CHPP (TGC-1, part of the Gazprom Energoholding Group) comprises St. Petersburg’s three oldest power plants built in 1897–1898: Power Plant No. 1 (76 Obvodny Canal Emb.), Power Plant No. 2 (11 Novgorodskaya St.), and Power Plant No. 3 (104 Fontanka River Emb.). Nearly every generation of power equipment is represented at the Central CHPP.
In the 2000s, St. Petersburg’s central districts faced a shortage of electricity due to an obsolete and inadequate power infrastructure. In 2012, TGC-1 started building a gas turbine CHPP under a capacity supply agreement (CSA). Taking into account the city’s power network development plans, Power Plant No. 1 was identified as the best platform for a new generating facility.
The gas turbine CHPP came onstream in December 2016. Since January 1, 2017, it has operated under CSA terms. The CHPP’s equipment is currently being connected to the city’s power lines, including by switching cable lines to a new switchgear station.
The gas turbine CHPP consists of two modern power units (total electricity output of 100 MW, thermal output of up to 240 Gcal/h): two gas turbines and two heat recovery boilers, as well as a backup hot-water boiler. The project employs cutting-edge high-efficiency equipment that helps minimize environmental impacts. Furthermore, the plant is powered by natural gas, the most eco-friendly fuel. The power facility is highly efficient, as it generates electricity and heat simultaneously.
The modern integrated computer-aided water treatment system is fitted with advanced filtration and deionization systems. Moreover, the service water system is equipped with a dry cooler, thus eliminating the need to use cooling ponds or construct a bulky evaporative cooling tower in the city center.
The cutting-edge 110 kV switchgear station was built at Power Plant No. 1 in order to ensure power distribution and the reliable operation of power networks.
Special attention in the project was paid to preserving the integrity of St. Petersburg’s unique historic architecture. As a result, the new building of the small gas turbine CHPP blends well into the urban landscape of the city center.
The construction of the gas turbine CHPP at Power Plant No. 1 of the Central CHPP is the final project of TGC-1 under the CSA. Between 2009 and 2016, the construction and modernization program in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region was carried out for power facilities with a total capacity of around 1.7 GW.