Electricity and Control December 2024

TRANSFORMERS, SUBSTATIONS + CABLES : PRODUCTS + SERVICES

Private power generation from steam turbines for the grid

As South Africa’s energy grid evolves towards using more privately generated power, there are growing opportunities for companies employing steam turbines for their own sites to boost revenue through electricity sales. Staying ahead of the trend, WEG Africa provides a full service offering to sup port this move. Steam turbines represent mission critical equipment for companies across a range of industries, from sugar and pa per to steel and petrochemicals. WEG Africa suggests that there is now greater opportunity for these sectors to generate more energy to sell into the national grid. Traditionally, companies using steam turbines have con sumed all the energy they produce in their processes – tak ing advantage of benefits such as supply reliability and cost savings. As South Africa struggles to keep up with power de mand, however, there are more opportunities for the private sector to produce excess electricity for sale into the grid. Alastair Gerrard, Executive Energy Systems at WEG Africa, says this trend is already advanced in Brazil – the home of holding company WEG. Many steam turbine users in Brazil have capitalised on the opportunities there by increasing their boiler efficiency. “Although it may be common in South Africa’s sugar in dustry, for example, to use medium pressure boilers, the Brazilian market uses high pressure boilers – up to 140 bar – and companies gain significant efficiencies with these higher pressures,” he says. “This allows the sugar producers, and other users, to upgrade their facilities and grow their reve nues through the sale of electricity. In parallel, they are pay ing off their capital investments much more quickly.” Gerrard points to the establishment of the National Transmission Company of South Africa as a key step in transforming the country’s electricity industry. This will open doors for more private companies to ‘export’ excess electricity into the grid, helping to stabilise supply and strengthen the foundation for economic growth. “This has been successfully achieved in countries like Brazil, and it is exciting to see that we are making progress on this journey in South Africa,” he says. “WEG Africa can play an important role in this endeavour – with our long ex perience in this field and our full service offering for steam turbine users.” Cobus van Eeden, WEG Turbine Services Manager at WEG Africa, highlights that the company offers customers a turnkey capability. It sizes steam turbine solutions according to the specific operating parameters of the customer’s appli cation, and supplies a bespoke thermal power system. The service also includes installing the machines, commissioning and ongoing after-sales servicing and maintenance. “As an OEM of steam turbines, gearboxes and generators, we can also help customers to assess their current equip ment – whether these are WEG products or from other OEMs – and provide strategic options and recommendations,” says van Eeden. “In addition to our depth of engineering expertise for repairing such equipment, we can analyse the potential for enhancing operational efficiency and increasing power

output of the equipment.” The company provides long-term ser vice level agreements, including contracts for preventive maintenance. WEG Africa also works with customers on their forward planning, which may include considering the transition to electricity exporting. Gerrard says this approach is built on WEG’s commitment, as an OEM, to stand

Alastair Gerrard, Executive Energy Systems at WEG Africa.

alongside customers throughout the lifecycle of the equipment supplied. He notes that, while there has in the past been some acceptance of third-party sup port in this field, WEG Africa favours in-house OEM support for its solutions, managed through service level agreements that give customers confidence in the total lifecycle cost of their purchase. “Our field service technicians – active in many African countries and offshore – work on-site with customers to understand their equipment and requirements, and in turn deliver the most appropriate response and guidance on maintenance scheduling,” he says.

For more information visit: www.weg.net

DECEMBER 2024 Electricity + Control

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