The second steam unit of Asalouyeh combined-cycle power plant in Bushehr Province was officially launched on Saturday.
With the launch of the new unit, the power station is now fully operational with a capacity of close to 1,500 megawatts, IRNA reported.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Energy Minister Ali Akbar Mehrabian said, “Increasing production, helping with the stability and reliability of the network and responding to rising demand in the central region is among the goals that is expected to be realized now that the power plant is fully operational.”
Converting the traditional plant into a combined-cycle one has increased its efficiency to about 50%, up 25% compared to the time when it only ran on natural gas, he added.
Now that the second steam unit is operational, the plant will save fuel consumption by at least 846 million cubic meters per year and reduce environmental pollution.
Converting a single-cycle plant to a combined-cycle one means increasing the power generation capacity without the need for using an additional fossil fuel feedstock. In addition to the economic benefit of saving fuel consumption, it has environmental benefits such as reduction in pollutants and greenhouse gases.
The construction of each steam unit increases the efficiency of power station while saving 270 million cubic meters of fuel consumption per year.
A combined-cycle power plant uses both gas and steam turbines to produce up to 50% more electricity from the same fuel than a traditional simple cycle plant. The waste heat from the gas turbine is sent to a nearby steam turbine that also generates electricity.
To accelerate the conversion of power station to a combined-cycle facility, the plant’s first desalination unit was launched in March.
The desalination unit has the capacity to process 3,000 cubic meters of saline water per day and meets the facility’s water requirements in one of the most drought-stricken regions of Iran.
Two more desalination units are under construction and upon their completion, the power plant will be supplied with 9,000 cubic meters of water per day.
A 7-km 28-inch pipeline transfers 8,000 cubic meters of saline water from Asalouyeh to Bidkhoun per day and after processing, the water is stored in tanks.
Built over 3 hectares, the facility is equipped with six gas units, and two steam units. It is located 25 km off South Pars Special Economic Zone in Bidkhoun County.
The plant supplies electricity to South Pars Gas Field refineries in phases 9, 10, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20 and 21. Refining complexes in Pars 2 region, including phases 12, 13, 14, 19, 22, 23 and 24, also rely on the new power station in emergency cases.
Comprising 24 phases, South Pars is the world's largest gas field shared by Iran and Qatar in the Persian Gulf.
