Author：Tianjin Pauway Power Equipment Co., LtdHist：113
Flexible management of the base load or peak load of natural gas fueled cogeneration power plants
Energy operating companies can continuously operate gas engine generators to meet basic electrical loads. This is particularly advantageous in the absence of reliable centralized power plants, or when the economy and availability of natural gas fuel are key driving factors.
The basic load is the basic constant demand for electricity during a typical day. Therefore, the demand for electricity is always at least as high as the basic load. As a function of electricity demand, the basic load in winter is higher than that in summer.
Gas engine based generator sets are usually also used to handle peak loads. Peak load is a term used to describe the temporary high demand output of power grids or other utility power grids. Peak demand is typically characterized by rapid growth in demand output, which is why scalable peak load power plants must be rapidly deployed. The peak demand for the power grid usually occurs in the early morning and evening of working days. These power plants can provide high output levels in seconds or minutes. They also include modern gas power plants.
Some utilities choose to sign long-term power purchase agreements to have a backup power block to address these intermittent peaks. However, this approach may lead to unnecessary basic load capacity, thereby increasing the costs for utility companies and their customers.
Customers receive PAUWAY expert advice on how to design, install, and maintain power plants designed for different utility applications.
The benefits of using gas generator sets include:
Reduce energy costs
Effectively utilizing resources
Opportunities to increase income
The scale of base load power plants can range from a few megawatts on small islands to over 100 megawatts in large urban areas. These power plants can be operated in parallel by several 400 to 10300 kilowatt hour generators, serving as the central power source for the local power grid.
A typical peak load power plant solution operates in the range of 2 to 50 megawatts for 100 to 3000 hours per year. Most power plants that operate for 100 hours per year typically use diesel fuel to cover a super peak, while natural gas fueled power plants are more economical, have longer operating hours, and have longer peak demand durations.
The parallel switchgear system used for energy utilities allows multiple generator sets to operate in parallel on the main grid. In the open energy market, the electricity generated by these generators can be used to meet the demand of local customers during peak hours, or sold at spot prices in the open real-time energy market for profit.
