Plant Optimization

Digital upgrades coming to Georgia’s Wansley Unit 9 plant

Digital upgrades coming to Georgia’s Wansley Unit 9 plant
MEAG's Wansley Unit 9 power plant in Georgia (Photo: Emerson).

The Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia plans to modernize operations at its Wansley Unit 9 combined cycle power plant.

Emerson will make the upgrades, which include replacing the legacy balance-of-plant, steam turbine controls, gas turbine controls, as well as the generator excitation, burner management and vibration monitoring systems.

New predictive software will help manage steam temperature during energy load changes, Emerson said in a release Wednesday.

“MEAG Power’s forward-thinking approach to meeting future capacity and energy requirements balances the stability of natural gas power generation with the variability of renewable resources,” said Bob Yeager, President of Emerson’s power and water business.

He added: “Our advanced, integrated platform of digitally transformative software and technologies will optimize the operations at the Wansley natural-gas fired unit, enabling more reliable and efficient delivery of energy to their member partners.”

Upgrades to the 500-megawatt (MW) natural gas-fueled plant are expected complete in 2022.

According to Emerson, which helps modernize plants, Wansley delivers 69% emissions-free power – but obsolete generation controls have impacted the plant’s availability and financial performance.

“Natural gas generation is a crucial part of our diverse energy mix that will play a meaningful role as we transition to a higher percentage of non-emitting generation,” said Steve Jackson, [Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia] Senior Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer.

“Modernizing the Wansley Unit 9 combined cycle plant with Emerson’s proven, advanced Ovation automation platform will enable us to continue providing reliable and competitively priced power to our 49 Participant communities, ensuring long-term success.”