Wärtsilä in US collaboration to test hydrogen blended fuel as a step towards decarbonised power plant operations
The order was booked to Wärtsilä’s order intake in April.
The delivery comprises seven Wärtsilä 50SG gas engines operating with natural gas fuel. They will be part of a modern, low carbon natural gas energy facility that will serve customers of WEC Energy Group utilities We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service in Wisconsin.
The fast-starting and stopping Wärtsilä engines have the flexibility to rapidly respond to the inherent fluctuations from solar and wind, and will thus provide the necessary grid balancing for a reliable power supply for Wisconsin’s electric grid.
“WEC Energy Group is a company with unmatched operational expertise. They know it’s all about reliability, flexibility, and efficiency, and we are proud to have been chosen as their engine supplier for the third time,” added Jon Rodriguez, director, engine power plants, Wärtsilä Energy in North America.
“Wärtsilä is helping to create a carbon neutral world for electricity providers and the Wärtsilä 50SG engine is a hallmark of that future-proof design. With the ability to convert the engine to run on various fuels including hydrogen blends, the Wärtsilä 50SG will be able to support the reliability and flexibility demands of our client now and well into the future.”
Delivery of the Wärtsilä engines will take place in October, and the commissioning of the plant is scheduled for March 2023. WEC Energy Group has earlier ordered Wärtsilä engines for two other power plant projects, with total output of 188 MW.