Auxiliary power consumption

reduction opportunities in thermal

power plants

By Lakshmi Narain

Auxiliary power consumption in a thermal power plant is a major

source of energy consumption.

During the financial year 2007-08, total generation by coal plants

was 488157.46 Mus with a PLF of 78.75 %.

Auxiliary power consumption was 8.17 % .

If this APC gets reduced only by 0.17 %, fresh capacity addition of

about 120 MW can be achieved without any investment.

APC reduction initiatives not only reduces energy intensity

but also ensures more revenues because of increase in
energy export.

APC REDUCTION OPPORTUNITIES

On line monitoring of power consumption of various auxiliaries

through OLEMS
Monitoring the power consumption of each equipment before and
after overhaul
Energy efficient coating of the pumps
Introduction of VFDs
Better O&M practices
Conducting energy audit in a structured manner and
implementation of recommendations as per action plan
Introduction of latest state of the art technologies on specific
systems without waiting for R&M of the whole power plant
Check audits

On Line Energy Management System

As per CEA notification Regulations on

Installation and Operation of Meters
2006 meters for energy accounting and
auditing are to be installed and monitored.

On Line Energy Management System

To measure, monitor, trend & compare power

consumption of all major systems/ sub systems/
auxiliaries for improving Sp. Energy Consumption

Installation of energy meters on all HT drives and on LT

drives > 100KW, which can be hooked up to a central
server with the software for assessment of SEC

Already installed and working at Tanda, Dadri coal,

Simhadri, Kawas, Faridabad of NTPC

Under procurement / installation at other stations

Monitoring the power consumption of

each equipment before and after overhaul

This helps in assessing the power savings achieved due to maintenance jobs
carried out during the overhaul and thus see the effectiveness of different
maintenance job carried out.

Energy efficient coating of the

pumps

4 -5 % improvement in pump efficiency is achievable.

Introduction of VFDs

Suitable for drives where

i. load fluctuation are frequent
ii. motor loading less than 60-70 % on various occasions
iii. equipments designed with margin for safety purposes
Depending the above factors, pay backs can be 2-7 years
Technology available for HT & LT applications, which has proven to be
reliable. IGBT/IGCC already in use at Dahanu.

Better O&M practices

Conducting energy audit in a structured

manner and implementation of action plan

Conducting energy audit in a structured

manner and implementation of action plan
Energy Audit System includes

Preparation of Energy Audit Procedure

Preparation of Energy Audit Schedule

Conduct of Energy Audits

Preparations of Reports indicating recommendations, saving potential

and action plan.

Implementation of the action plan including sustainability of energy

savings.

Check audit
The purpose of check audit is to assess the
sustainability of the energy savings

Introduction of latest state of the art

technologies on specific systems without
waiting for R&M of the whole power plant