One of the world’s largest ongoing thermal power generation projects in South Africa has received a boiler for its first unit.
The unit at the Kusile power station a supercritical-pressure boiler is part of an order received in 2007.
The unit has already commenced commercial operation.
The boiler was delivered by Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems Ltd. (MHPS), in cooperation with a group of companies in Africa and Europe. Kusile power station is being constructed for Eskom South Africa’s state power utility.
Once completed, it will provide a total output of 9,600 megawatts (MW), delivered by two power stations each capable of generating 4,800 MW of power.
The newly delivered boiler is one of 12 coal-fired units to be installed at the Medupi(2) and Kusile power stations, each offering a power output of 800 MW.
The adoption of supercritical-pressure technologies and capabilities allows the Kusile Power station to generate power more efficiently while reducing carbon dioxide.
Although Eskom had previously announced that commercial operations at Kusile Power Station Unit 1 would launch by July 2018, commercial operation kicked off 11 months ahead of schedule thanks to the efforts by MHPS.
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The Kusile Power Station is being construction in Witbank, Mpumalanga Province While Medupi Power Station is under construction in Lephalale, Limpopo Province.
Formed in 2014, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems,Ltd.,a joint venture company formed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Hitachi,integrating thermal power generation systems and other related businesses.
Kusile is the first power plant in Africa to implement clean fuel technology such as flue-gas desulphurisation – a state-of-the-art technology used to remove oxides of sulphur, such as sulphur dioxide, from exhaust flue gases in power plants that burn coal or oil.