The Baiji 1 and 2 gas-fired simple-cycle power plants in northern Iraq that were damaged by Islamic State militants are being reconstructed to restore a combined power generation capacity of 1.6GW.
Owned by Iraq’s Ministry of Electricity, the 636MW Baiji 1 power plant was commissioned in 2003 while the 1GW Baiji 2 facility was brought in to operation in 2014. Both the facilities were captured by the militants in 2014.
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The Ministry of Electricity selected the key contractors for rebuilding the power station in September 2019.
Iraq’s Council of Ministers were expected to approve the contracts in 2020, while a financial agreement for the reconstruction project which is estimated to cost approximately £1bn ($1.3bn) was also expected to be reached with Iraq’s Ministry of Finance in the same year.
Scheduled for commissioning in 2023, the reconstructed power station is intended to supply electricity to the country’s biggest oil refinery located in Baiji as well as a concrete plant apart from powering thousands of homes in the Salahuddin province of Iraq.
Location
The Baiji gas-fired power station is located at Baiji, approximately 250km north of Baghdad, in the Salah al-Din Governorate of Iraq.
Project background
The Baiji power station as well as the Baiji refinery complex was captured and damaged by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in June 2014.
The Ministry of Electricity, Iraq took full control and decided to revamp of the facilities after the fall of ISIS in 2017.
Baiji power station reconstruction details
The Baiji power station reconstruction involves the installation of four Siemens STG5-2000E heavy gas turbines along with generators, auxiliaries, automation and control systems at the Baiji 1 power plant, as well as the inspection and revamps of six exiting gas turbine units of the Baiji 2 power plant.
STG5-2000E is a 536ºC class 3,000rpm gas turbine designed to operate at 50Hz frequency. The rated power output of the turbine is 187MW and it offers 36.5% gross efficiency in simple-cycle operation.
The reconstruction project also involves the installation of two 400kV and one 13kV substation at the power complex.
Contractors involved with the reconstruction project
A consortium of Egyptian engineering and construction company Orascom Construction and the German engineering group Siemens signed an agreement for the engineering, procurement, construction, and finance (EPC + Finance) for the Baiji power plant reconstruction project in September 2019.
Siemens will be responsible for the supply of new E-class gas turbines, generators, and substations as well as for the inspection and refurbishment of exiting gas turbines at the power complex.
Baiji 1 and 2 power plant details
The Baiji 1 power plant, commissioned in 2003, was equipped with four units with four Siemens V94.2 gas turbines of 159MW capacity each.
Washington Group International was engaged for the civil construction works while India’s BHEL carried out the balance of plant (BOP) erection works.
Siemens was awarded a long-term service and maintenance agreement for the Baiji 1 power plant in February 2014. The scope of the contract also included the supply of spare parts to overhaul the gas turbines with Siemens’ Si3D 3-dimensional blades and vanes.
The Baiji 2 power plant is equipped with six Siemens SGT5-PAC 2000E gas turbines of 169MW capacity each.
The Orascom and Siemens consortium was awarded the EPC contract for the 1GW Baiji 2 gas-fired simple-cycle power plant in February 2012.
The Power Generation Engineering and Services Company (PGESCO) was subcontracted by Orascom for the BOP construction works for the Baiji 2 facility in July 2012.
