IGEF Task Force Flexibility experts successfully carried out minimum load tests in Dadri NTPC power plant

In the third week of June 2018, IGEF Task Force Flexibility experts from EEC and VGB carried out test runs in block 6 of the NTPC Dadri power plant jointly with the local operations team of NTPC. The tests aimed at demonstrating the operation of the 500 MW block with a minimum load of 40 percent. The team succeeded in doing this – the block could safely be operated for five hours with a load of 200 MW. In the course of further tests, the test team was also able to drive load ramps of 5 MW / min and 15 MW / min successfully in the range of 200 to 500 MW. These results confirm the findings of a preliminary study for the Dadri and Simhadri NTPC power plants which derives three flexibility scenarios targeting a minimum load of 50 percent, 40 percent and 25 percent.

The team of experts informed the NTPC management in New Delhi about the encouraging results of the test runs. Mr. Gurdeep Singh, Chairman and Managing Director of NTPC, was very pleased with those. As a next step, the EEC / VGB team will prepare an implementation plan that outlines and explains the actions needed to ensure safe and reliable operation at 40 percent load. The Indian partners are interested in a quick implementation of these measures, because the flexible operation of the coal-fired power plants is an important precursor for the integration of fluctuating renewable energies. By 2022, the installed capacity of renewable energy in India is expected to increase from 45 GW (as of today) to 175 GW – the current total installed capacity is 334 GW.

Mr. Tobias Winter, Director of the Indo-German Energy Forum Support Office, congratulated the team of experts from EEC, VGB and NTPC for this great achievement which is "a milestone for the energy transition in India". The flexible operation of conventional power plants to adapt to increasing shares of power from fluctuating renewable energy sources is one of the priority topics of IGEF Subgroup I on 'Enhancement of Power Plants'.

 

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