OREANDA-NEWS. E.ON and Evonik Industries have officially put a highly efficient combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power plant at the Marl chemical park into operation. The power plant was developed, financed and built by E.ON Connecting Energies and will be operated by Evonik. It replaces an old coal-fired unit. With this project the partners ensure the cost-efficient and environmentally friendly supply of energy to the Marl chemical park, one of Europe’s largest integrated chemical industry sites and the largest production site operated by Evonik.

The innovative plant with its combined heat and power generation technology has a power generating capacity of 60 megawatts and a thermal capacity of 100 megawatts. The fuel utilization rate is 89 per cent, which helps to save some 280,000 tons of CO2 annually – roughly equivalent to the amount of CO2 produced by a town of 30,000 inhabitants per year.

“The CCGT power plant in Marl shows what the new energy world is about, and it is proof of our capability to deliver the tailor-made customer solutions that are part of E.ON’s new strategy. Energy-intensive companies can now make substantial energy savings in an environmentally friendly way. We will continue to push ahead with distributed energy generation in Germany together with, and for, our customers,” said Leonhard Birnbaum, Member of the Board of Management of E.ON SE.

“The new CCGT plant is a major step in the structural renewal of our power station fleet in Marl,” said Thomas Wessel, Member of the Executive Board of Evonik. “By investing in modern technology we help to ensure the future competitiveness of Germany as an industrial location. With this highly efficient plant we also contribute to the political objective of increasing the share of power produced by combined heat and power plants in Germany from the current level of 16 percent of 25 per cent in 2020.”

For decades the specialty chemicals company has been generating most of the electricity needed on site. The new CCGT plant replaces a coal-fired unit, making it an important building block in meeting the public service obligation. It allows the 100 or so production plants to be supplied even more efficiently with steam at the standard pressures as well as power at the required current and voltage levels. The greater flexibility in comparison to the previous coal-fired unit and the reduced dependence on coal in the fuel mix also strengthens the chemical park’s competitiveness.

“It’s good to see the chemical park in Marl strengthened by this investment into the future. This investment in efficient and environmentally friendly technology shows yet again that retaining and promoting industrial structures and improving the environmental situation do not have to be mutually exclusive,” remarked Cay S?berkr?b, councilor for the Recklinghausen district, on the commissioning of the new power plant.

“Today is a good day for Marl and the region,” said the major of Marl, Werner Arndt. “The new combined-cycle gas turbine power plant not only supplies district heat to the town of Marl but also plays an important part in the energy supply of the chemical park and hence in strengthening Marl’s role as an industrial location with over 10,000 jobs and apprenticeship training positions, which are indispensable for our town and our region.”