Mitsubishi Power, the power solutions brand of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), has announced the start of operations at the Rades C combined cycle power plant in Tunisia, owned by the Société Tunisienne de l’Electricité et du Gaz (STEG).
Expanding the power generating capacity in Tunisia
The company said that the high efficiency 450MW plant was developed by a consortium led by Mitsubishi Power and including Sumitomo Corporation. The project aims to expand the power generating capacity in Tunisia and to achieve a more stable supply of electricity, so as to help accelerate the sustainable economic development of the North African country.
During the meeting with consortium members on 26 August 2022, STEG CEO Hichem Anene said: “Electricity is a cornerstone of economic development, and the Rades C power plant will play a key role in accelerating Tunisia’s growth for decades to come.
“We want to thank Mitsubishi Power and all consortium partners for this landmark project that will help us meet our energy demand today with reliable, clean and efficient power across the country, and aiming to facilitate our energy transition with industry-leading solutions and decarbonisation technologies in Japan such as hydrogen, carbon capture and energy storage.”
The state-of-the-art Rades C power plant has been designed to meet Tunisia’s environmental goals and contribute significantly to a reduction of the CO2 gases emitted, with hydrogen ready gas turbine technology that can be easily converted to H2 firing with minimal modifications, the statement highlighted.
Hideshi Kawamoto, President and CEO, Mitsubishi Power Ltd. and Senior Fellow, Deputy Head of Energy Transition & Power Headquarters of Energy Systems, MHI, commented: “The Rades C combined cycle power plant reflects Mitsubishi Power’s long-term commitment to Tunisia, where our advanced technology has supported STEG to expand the country’s power capacity over the last four decades.
“As STEG celebrates its 60th anniversary, we look forward to continuing working with them to help power the country’s sustainable development goals for many decades to come,” he continued.
For this project, Mitsubishi Power provided a high-efficiency M701F gas turbine, a steam turbine, a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG), as well as a team of onsite technical advisors and supervisors to support the construction and commissioning periods. Consortium partner Sumitomo Corporation provided the balance of plant equipment and undertook the civil and installation works.
In addition to the equipment supply, Mitsubishi Power will support STEG with the maintenance of the power plant under a long-term service agreement (LTSA) with TOMONI HUB which supports continuous 24-hours monitoring, 365-days a year.
Economic development and quality infrastructure
The project was financed by the Japanese Official Development Assistant (ODA) organised by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) under the Japanese government's "Partnership for Quality Infrastructure" initiative.
The Rades C power project has utilised local content, materials and resources and equipment, resulting in the creation of around 70 permanent jobs and approximately 2,000 additional jobs during project development and construction, the company said.
Mitsubishi Power has a 40-year history in Tunisia, beginning with the delivery of gas and oil-fired boilers and steam turbines for Rades A, a 340MW Rades A power plant located in the same power station as Rades C. The Rades A power plant has been successfully operational since 1985.
“We look forward to growing our partnership with Mitsubishi Power to support us in charting Tunisia’s path to a sustainable and decarbonised energy future,” Anene concluded.
