Fuel mix
Natural gas is used to fire Essent’s Claus power plant. Natural gas is released from oil or coal seams deep in the earth’s crust. As it rises, the gas collects under a layer of gastight rock. The gas in these natural gas bubbles can be recovered relatively easily. The natural gas field in Slochteren, sourced from coal seams, is a good example of this. Essent uses natural gas at the Claus power plant, the Moerdijk power plant and at our CHP power plants.
We use a wide range of fuels to generate energy at different types of power plants. We call those fuels our fuel mix. The main fuels we use are natural gas, coal, biomass, land-based wind, sea-based wind and hydroelectric power. In the case of Claus C, gas was the obvious choice when it came to choosing the type of fuel to use since Claus A and B are also gas-fired. In addition, gas-fired power plants are specially designed to enable the production of electricity to be increased or reduced quickly (rapid adjustment up or down). This means that they can be used to compensate for fluctuations in the supply of solar and wind energy. We have chosen a combination of coal and biomass for the new Eemshaven power plant because we do not want all our energy production activities to be dependent
on one type of fuel as that would put the security of supply and affordability of electricity at risk.
The installation Claus C is a so-called CCGT unit (CCGT stands for Combined Cycle Gas Turbine). At the power plant, there are three gas turbine generators and the steam turbine generator from Claus B which is being re-used. The production process for generating electricity starts with the combustion of natural gas in the gas turbines. The combustion gases expand in the turbine which then drives a generator in which electricity is produced. By using this method, two thirds of the power provided by the natural gas is converted directly into electricity.
Residual heat The other 33 per cent of the power is provided by the hot flue gases. These flue gases heat water in the waste heat boiler. That water then turns into steam which sets the steam turbine in motion and this in turn ensures that the connected generator starts to produce electricity. The steam that can no longer be used for generating power at the end of this process is cooled down and turned into water again which can be re-used.
Efficiency The Claus C power plant has been built using the latest technologies and knowledge and is therefore hypermodern. As a result, it also has a level of efficiency of 58.5 per cent which is much higher than the efficiency of 40 per cent achieved by Claus A which is still in operation. A higher level of efficiency also means that less fuel is required in order to generate the same amount of energy.
Linne hydroelectric power station The Linne hydroelectric power station is located just a few kilometres away from the Claus power plant. Compared to the two units Claus A and Claus C, this power station has a modest capacity of 11 megawatts. The power station has four Kaplan water turbines and produces enough green power each year for approximately 9,000 households. A fish ladder has been installed for migratory species of fish.
Want to find out more? www.essent.eu
The Linne hydroelectric power station with the Claus power plant in the background.
Excursion centre Would you like to visit the Claus power plant? Then you can. The Essent excursion centre organises tours for groups on request. The tours are held on weekdays during the morning or afternoon. The minimum number of people required in order to make up a group is 10 and a minimum age applies. Tours are given free of charge but you will have to organise your own transport and pay your own costs for getting to and from the site. Please note that you will also have to provide proof of identity at the entrance to the site. The excursion programme for the Claus power plant will take between 2 and 2½ hours.
For more information or to book an excursion, please go to www.essent.nl/excursie.
Working at Essent We are continuously looking for talented technical staff for posts on different levels, ranging from installers to project engineers and from environmental coordinators to project managers.
A bird’s-eye view of the Claus power plant
Want to find out more? Go to www.werkenbijessent.nl.
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Fuel