Stratford Power Station

Stratford Power Station
Location of Stratford Power Station in New Zealand
Country New Zealand
Location Taranaki
Coordinates 39°19′56″S 174°19′8″E / 39.33222°S 174.31889°ECoordinates: 39°19′56″S 174°19′8″E / 39.33222°S 174.31889°E
Status Operational
Commission date 1998, 2010
Decommission date 2001
Owner(s) Contact Energy
Thermal power station
Primary fuel Natural Gas
Combined cycle? yes
Cooling source Patea River
Power generation
Nameplate capacity 575 MW

The Stratford Power Station is a 575 MW power station located east of Stratford, Taranaki, New Zealand. It comprises one combined cycle unit and two open cycle gas turbine units and is owned and operated by Contact Energy.

History

In June 1976, the construction of a 200MW power station was completed on the Stratford Power Station site.[1] This comprised four 50MW units, each a Pratt and Whitney TwinPak of two FT4 gas turbines. The FT4 engine is the stationary version of the Pratt & Whitney JT4. This plant was fired on natural gas.

The four 50MW units were decommissioned and removed in 2001.

The FT4 units were owned and operated (in turn) by NZED, NZE, ECNZ and Contact Energy.

Greenhouse gas emissions and mitigation of climate change

In 1993, the Environment Minister Simon Upton established a board of inquiry under the Resource Management Act to hear the application for a resource consent for Electricity Corporation of New Zealand's (ECNZ) proposed 400 megawatt Stratford power station in Taranaki.[2]

In February 1995, the board of inquiry concluded that the station’s operation would significantly increase New Zealand’s emissions of carbon dioxide and make it more difficult for the Government to meet its obligation to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases to their 1990 levels as committed to under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The board of inquiry recommended that ECNZ must establish a carbon sink "sufficient to eventually store in perpetuity the equivalent quantity of carbon emitted from the site over the term of the permit".[3]

In March 1995, the Environment Minister Simon Upton approved the expansion of the station to 400-megawatts on the condition that forests were planted to create a carbon sink or the effect of emissions was reduced by greater efficiency elsewhere.[4]

In June 2003, a hearing committee of the TRC granted a variation to delete the consent conditions requiring mitigation of CO2 emissions.[5]

Combined Cycle Plant

The plant consists of one 360 MW combined cycle unit, based on a GT26 gas turbine in single shaft configuration. Cooling is achieved with a mechanical draft cooling tower, using water from the Patea River. This plant is known as TCC (Taranaki Combined Cycle). Fletcher Construction started construction in 1996 and it was commissioned in 1998.[6] It was purchased by Contact Energy in 2003.

Peaker plant

Over 2009 and 2010, a 200 MW of new generation was built on the site, comprising two LMS100 gas turbine units in open cycle configuration.[7] This is used for peaking duty, to complement hydro and wind generation, and was officially opened by Prime Minister John Key on 31 May 2011.[8]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Stratford Power Station, brochure by New Zealand Electricity, 1981
  2. ↑ NZPA/NZH (15 December 1996). "Greenpeace wants Upton to be witness at power station". The Royal Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  3. ↑ NZPA (19 February 1995). "Stratford power station given qualified go-ahead". The Royal Society of New Zealand. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  4. ↑ NZPA/NZH (24 March 1995). "Mercury Energy plan to build plant in Auckland". The Royal Society of New Zealand. Archived from the original on 9 July 2012.
  5. ↑ "Stratford Power Station (TCCP & SPP) Monitoring Programme Annual Report" (PDF). TRC. 2010.
  6. ↑ "Stratford Power Station". Fletcher Construction. Retrieved 16 July 2012.
  7. ↑ Clark, Lindsay (30 April 2008). "Contact orders 200 MW gas-fired peaking turbines for Stratford". Ministry of Economic Development. Retrieved 28 September 2008.
  8. ↑ Anthony, John (1 June 2011). "Power plant fires up in 10 minutes". Taranaki Daily News.