E.ON Russia upgrades automation at one of Europe’s largest thermal power plants

Emerson’s Ovation control system will be installed during shutdown. Utility aims at improving operational efficiencies and reliability at Russia’s Surgut-2 Power Plant.

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Emerson Process Management has completed an automation upgrade for an 800 MW unit in Russia’s Surgut-2 Power Plant, one of the largest thermal power stations in Europe. Emerson, serving as the main automation contractor for the project, completed the upgrade during a four-month shutdown.

Unit 3 of the Surgut-2 Power Plant, owned and operated by E.ON Russia, will now operate with Emerson’s PlantWeb digital automation architecture with Ovation expert control system, which was designed specifically for power applications. Previously, the unit used vintage analog controls. Emerson’s technology will help operators improve operational efficiencies and reliability.

Emerson’s technology and power-plant expertise helped to enhance the manageability of station equipment, tighten control across all operating ranges, and improve the unit’s dynamic behavior.

In addition to upgrading the Unit 3 control system, instrumentation, control valves, and other related equipment, Emerson also modernized controls for the fluid end of the turbine set, reconstructed and equipped the Unit 3 control room, provided engineering and installation services, certified compliance with requirements of Russia’s System Operator of Central Dispatch Administration of the Unified Energy System, and assisted with unit startup.

The new integrated system enables automated operation of the entire power unit, including electrical controls for turbine generators and pumps, boiler and burner controls, and unit power and frequency control and coordination. It also provides real-time monitoring of equipment and timely notification of abnormal situations, and helps determine equipment health so technicians can schedule maintenance and repairs more efficiently. 

“Implementing a full-scale, high-performance control system and ensuring its full availability for launch during a four-month shutdown was a real technical challenge,” said Stepan Okunkov, manager of CIS Power & Water Solutions Engineering Center of Emerson Process Management. “But we were able to achieve this goal through the excellent teamwork between Emerson and Surgut-2 power plant specialists from E.ON Russia.”

A team of specialists from Emerson’s St. Petersburg Engineering Center used their experience on power-industry projects to ensure the timely implementation of the control system. Special software tools, standardized approaches to automation challenges, and the modular architecture of the Ovation system helped minimize adjustments and significantly reduce overall project execution time.

As part of the project, Emerson also installed AMS Suite predictive maintenance software, which uses advanced diagnostics to enable Surgut-2 technicians to make better decisions based on a better view into the performance of their instrumentation. The Ovation system’s user interface is also consistent with previously upgraded units, simplifying user adoption. 

The Surgut-2 station uses natural gas coming from the Tyumen Region’s oil fields. Based on annual output, the plant is one of the biggest thermal power stations in the world, producing more than 35 billion kWh per year. The upgraded automation enables the Surgut-2 Power Plant to adjust the unit’s output to meet market needs. Customers in western Siberia and the Ural region should notice the improvements soon.

Emerson Process Management

www.EmersonProcess.com

Edited by Peter Welander, pwelander(at)cfemedia.com