GE has deployed a hybrid power plant at its Power Conversion production site in Berlin, Germany. The plant enables primary energy savings of around 30 percent compared to systems that generate heat and power separately through conventional heating and external electricity procurement.
The plant will not only supply power and heat to the GE production site, but it also will feed power into the grid.
The hybrid power plant was developed by Kofler Energies and GE’s planning office BLS Energieplan and combines Belectric solar PV with a Jenbacher combined heat and power (CHP) engine and an energy storage battery.
The Jenbacher J312 gas engine features integrated heat storage and has an efficiency level of 89.2 percent. The 400 kW system covers the basic heat load of the site during the heating season and is fueled by natural gas.
A 600 kW solar power system with an operating voltage of 1,500 volts has been installed on the roof of the production hall. All measurement readings required for monitoring and controlling the system can be called up and managed remotely via a central energy management system.
When more power is being generated than is needed, surplus power is stored in a 200 kWh battery. This can then be released and fed into the plant network as required to meet times of higher energy demand. Surplus power only is supplied to the public grid when the battery is full.
The system is scalable and can be adapted for larger units.
