pwr_october-2024 - 24

TOP PLANT
1. Digitalization plays a crucial role at the 1.2GW
Jackson Generation power plant in Illinois,
ensuring optimal plant operations and real-time
responsiveness to grid demands. Shown here
are Operations Manager Corbin Shanklin and
Control Room Operator Eugene Mykhailenko
as they review distributed control system
screens. Courtesy: Jackson Generation
selective catalytic reduction system is
designed to quickly come online to meet
nitrogen oxide emissions early during
gas turbine startup. The HRSG itself is
mechanically designed for over 300 start/
stop cycles per year. "
These features have armed Jackson
Generation with an exceptionally low
heat rate for each of its 435-MW gas
turbines. " We're sitting around the low
end, around [6,400 to 6,600 Btu/kWh] at
baseload, even with the duct firing, " Matt
Wrightsman, Jackson Generation plant
engineer, told POWER. " So, it shows
good economics, " he said. " Your 7Fs
are just below [7,000 Btu/kWh], so when
you compete them against the same gas
price on city-gated, it makes them more
appetizing for the market to run us a little
bit more with more margin. "
Building the Jackson Generation plant,
however, was not without its challenges.
The biggest disruptor came from the COVID-19
pandemic. " Early in mid-2020 and
kind of all the way through probably mid2021,
we faced a lot of challenges with
labor and keeping guys onsite working, "
Kozey noted.
The project adhered to its tight threeyear
construction schedule, aided largely
by a unique charter signed by its engineering,
construction, and procurement
(EPC) contractor, Kiewit, J-POWER, and
Mitsubishi Power. " We were able to
overcome unprecedented challenges of
building the plant during a global pandemic
through consistent, open communication
and extensive onsite safety
measures, " noted Thomas Struchtemeyer,
project manager at Kiewit. " Working
together, we effectively mitigated the
impact and challenges related to the
supply chain and logistics to successfully
enter commercial operation on time. "
24
Adapting to a Changing Role
In another important measure of foresight,
one which ensured Jackson Generation
would perform as designed,
J-POWER also brought in key plant
operating personnel more than a year
before the facility's scheduled startup.
According to Corbin Shanklin, the plant's
operations manager, the crucial effort allowed
the team, which today comprises
just 27 full-time employees, to become
intimately familiar with the 1,200-MW
plant's systems and procedures.
" Anytime that they were bringing up
a new system, or they had the technical
field advisor onsite to commission a system,
we always had a couple of guys out
there with them to take notes, to kind of
pick his brain, to ask questions, " he explained.
" And then from there, we started
going ahead and building our procedures
early on in the commissioning phase. "
The operating team ultimately built a full
body of detailed operating documentation
for the first-of-a-kind facility's equipment,
which includes, for example, shutdown
procedures, preventative maintenance
checklists, spare inventories, and technical
notes to run the air-cooled condenser
for optimized winter operations.
While that accumulated knowledge
has been valuable in training new plant
personnel, it has also proven pivotal for
other new M501JAC facilities. " So, for
instance, in order to get the unit down to
turning gear-I think it was like 90 hours
or so-we created our own procedure to
cut that time by 24 hours or something.
We sent that to Mitsubishi Power, had
them put their blessing on it, and now
Mitsubishi is using that for all the other
501JAC plants, " Shanklin said.
Readying for an Evolving Future
Today, those efforts are paying even
greater dividends as Jackson Generation's
role shifts to align with PJM's market dynamics.
" It's definitely not just a baseload
plant. We do cycle quite a bit still and it depends
on what the wind is doing, " Shanklin
explained. " Last year in August, I think we
cycled each unit probably around 20 times.
This year, so far, in July and August, for the
most part, we've been running nonstop,
with a couple of cycles here and there, " he
said. Running the plant at this remarkable
level of operational flexibility and agility despite
its massive 1,200 MW capacity benefits
from the talents of its highly skilled
and dedicated team, Shanklin said. " It's
kind of like having something the size of a
school bus, but, you know, maneuvering it
like a motorcycle. "
www.powermag.com
POWER POINTS
Winning Attributes
✔ Debuting the first M501JAC
turbines in North America and
trailblazing an operational
framework with comprehensive
documentation.
✔ Achieving exceptional operating
performance, including a remarkably
low heat rate at baseload.
✔ Demonstrating adaptability to
cycle frequently while maintaining
reliability and efficiency, a feat
driven by a dedicated operations
team.
✔ Completing construction in a tight
schedule despite pandemic hurdles,
showcasing a strong collaboration
between key partners.
The plant's digital systems and control
technologies have also significantly
enhanced its flexibility, helping it keep
pace with shifting demand patterns
and regulatory requirements, Wrightsman
noted. " The way it's been tuned,
with digitalization and feed-forwarding,
allows us to match grid demand, " he
explained. " Even when prices are low,
we can tap into ancillary services because
of the control we have over
these turbines. "
As the energy landscape continues to
transform further, and market demands
evolve as decarbonization gains steam,
J-POWER is proactively working to ensure
the long-term viability and adaptability
of the Jackson Generation facility.
" We are looking into the hydrogen aspect
of Jackson, " said Kozey, noting that
M501JAC turbines are already capable
of co-firing a mix with 30% hydrogen.
J-POWER is already working with suppliers
and evaluating the infrastructure
required to bring hydrogen to the site in
the future, he said.
Jackson's position in the lucrative
PJM market has garnered immense
interest-and recently earned it a new
partner. In February 2023, Thai energy
giant Gulf Energy Development Plc.
acquired a 49% share of the plant for
$409.6 million. " This investment in
Jackson Generation can be considered
GULF's first step into the U.S. energy
market, " said GULF Chief Financial Officer
Yupapin Wangviwat. ■
-Sonal Patel is a POWER senior editor.
POWER | October 2024
http://www.powermag.com
pwr_october-2024

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