The world’s second Integrated Solar Combined Cycle (ISCC) plant constructed in Algeria again by Abener, in collaboration with Abengoa Solar (both are subsidiary companies of Abengoa), which is providing the design and will act as the technician of the solar part. The 150 MWe Hassi R’Mel Project, located near the town of the same name, is being lead by the project company Solar Power Plant 1 (SPP1) – majority held by engineering group Abener with a 51% stake. The project will adjoin an existing Sonelgaz power station at Tilghemt located at the country’s largest natural gas field, Hassi R’Mel, in northern Algeria.
| Project Overview | |
| Power Station: | ISCC Hassi R’mel |
| Location: | Hassi R’mel, Laghouat, Algeria |
| Owners (%): | Abener |
| Technology | Hybrid, Parabolic Trough, Gas |
| Solar Resource: | 2159 |
| Nominal Capacity: | 20 MW |
| Status | Operational |
| Start Year: | 2011 |
| Status Date | December 03, 2021 |
| Background | |
| Break Ground Date | 2007 |
| Lat/Long Location | 33.124,3.357 |
| Total Power Station Land Area (km2) | 0.64 |
| Participants | |
| Developer | Abengoa, Spain |
| EPC | Abener, Spain |
| Operator | Abener |
| Electricity Generation Offtaker | Sonatrach |
| Costs | |
| PPA or Tariff Period (Years) | 25 |
| Support Scheme Type | PPA |
| Concessional Funding or Other Support | IFC (World bank group) $15 million; International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) $15 million, AfDB $15 million. |
| Plant Configuration | |
| Solar Field | |
| Solar Field Aperture Area (m2) | 183860 |
| # of Solar Collector Assemblies (SCAs) | 224 |
| # of Loops | 56 |
| # of SCAs per Loop | 4 |
| SCA Length (m) | 150 |
| Collector/Heliostat Manufacturer | Abengoa, Spain |
| Collector/Heliostat Engineering or IP Owner | Abengoa, Spain |
| Collector/Heliostat Model | Astro (ET-150) |
| Mirror Manufacturer | Rioglass, Spain |
| Solar Field (Receiver) | |
| Receiver Working Fluid | Thermal oil |
| Receiver Working Fluid Category | Thermal oil/organics |
| # of Heat Collector Elements (HCEs) | 8064 |
| Solar Field or Receiver Inlet Temperture (C) | 293°C |
| Solar Field or Receiver Outlet Temperture (C) | 393°C |
| Receiver Manufacturer | Schott, Germany |
| Receiver Model | PTR 70 |
| Power Block | |
| Nominal Turbine or Power Cycle Capacity | 20 MW |
| Turbine Manufacturer | Siemens, Germany |
| Turbine Model | SST-900 |
| Power Cycle | Steam Rankine |
| Cooling Type | Dry |
The construction contract was signed in December 2006. The plant is to be developed on behalf of New Energy Algeria (NEAL), a joint venture set up by state-owned oil and gas and electricity majors, Sonatrach and Sonelgaz respectively, and an agro-industrial firm Semouleries Industrielles de la Mitidja (SIM), to carry out renewable energy projects. NEAL has a 20% equity holding in SPP1. Sonatrach (through its subsidiary Société de Valorisation des Hydrocarbures, SVH) holds a further 14%, and Compañía Española de Financiación del Desarrollo S.A (COFIDES), a Spanish state and privately owned company that provides medium and long-term financial support for projects in foreign countries where there is a Spanish interest, has a 15% holding.
At some 180,000 m², the two parabolic solar fields for the CSP component use Solucar TR troughs with galvanized steel framing, designed by Abengoa Solar NT, and again using glass mirrors manufactured at Abengoa Solar’s Rioglass Solar factory. The solar fields will comprise 224 parabolic collectors in 56 loops and the solar contribution to the total output is estimated at some 20 MWe. It will work in conjunction with a 130 MW CCGT plant comprising two 42 MW SGT-800 gas turbines supplied by Siemens and a 80 MW SST-900 steam turbine supplied also by Siemens.
The EPC contractor is formed by Abener and Teyma, which in April 2009 awarded the contract for the electrical balance of plant to ABB. The order, worth $14 million, includes design, engineering, supply, erection and commissioning of the medium- and low-voltage switchgear, auxiliary transformers, generator circuit breakers, isolated bus-ducts and emergency diesel generators. The project is expected to be completed by August 2010. Technical assistance was provided by Lahmeyer International while the lead bank behind the approximately €320 million scheme is Banque Extérieure d’Algérie (BEA).
Integrated Solar Combined Cycle (ISCC) technology aims to draw the environmental benefits of solar energy together with the operational advantages of a ‘conventional’ gas turbine-steam turbine combined cycle plant. While the solar resource partially substitutes fossil fuels, the installation can also supply energy to the grid whenever it is required. In addition, by taking advantage of the existing infrastructure associated with the development of a conventional thermal power plant – including but not limited to site access, power transmission links and a steam turbine power island – the economics of the concentrating solar thermal component are likely to be significantly enhanced.
Source: Renewable Energy World. https://www.renewableenergyworld.com/storage/integrating-solar-gas-turbines/, 18 April 2024.
