GE announced the successful completion of the first battery energy storage assisted black start of a GE 7F.03 gas turbine at the 150 megawatt (MW) simple cycle unit at Entergy Louisiana’s Perryville Power Station. This is the first time GE has achieved a black start of a GE heavy-duty gas turbine using energy storage. A “black start” consists of rebooting an idle power plant without support from the grid in the event of a major system disruption or a system-wide blackout.
The Perryville Power Station is supported by GE’s 7.4 MW battery-based energy storage system paired with the plant’s simple cycle gas turbine. “This is an innovative use of battery technology that provides another tool to buttress the overall reliability and resiliency of our system,” said Phillip May, president and CEO of Entergy Louisiana.
“Black start technology proves that energy generation sources integrated with battery energy storage systems is a -good method to effectively support the grid,” said Prakash Chandra, Renewable Hybrids CEO, GE Renewable Energy. “We are proud to have successfully completed the first ever black start of a GE heavy-duty turbine.”
A black start is one of the most difficult tasks in the power business. To provide a black start, traditionally some power stations have small diesel generators — normally called black start diesel generator (BSDG) — which can be used to start larger generators (of several megawatts capacity), which in turn can be used to start the main power station generators.
“This project demonstrates the complementary nature of gas-powered energy and battery storage, and we’re proud to integrate this technology while helping to maintain unit reliability and availability,” said Amit Kulkarni, General Manager for Large Blocks product segment, GE Gas Power. “With the battery energy storage system integrated to our heavy-duty gas turbines, we have created a first-of-its-kind backup support system, and we are excited about developing similar projects with our customers globally.”
This milestone project serves as a potential model for future projects in GE’s F-class gas turbine fleet of approximately 900 units in service producing approximately 150 GW of power in 12 countries.
About Entergy
Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including 9,000 megawatts of nuclear power. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.9 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of $11 billion and approximately 13,500 employees.
Entergy Louisiana, LLC provides electric service to more than 1 million customers and natural gas service to more than 93,000 customers in the greater Baton Rouge area. It has operations in southern, central and northern Louisiana.
About GE Renewable Energy
GE Renewable Energy is a $15 billion business which combines one of the broadest portfolios in the renewable energy industry to provide end-to-end solutions for our customers demanding reliable and affordable green power. Combining onshore and offshore wind, blades, hydro, storage, utility-scale solar, and grid solutions as well as hybrid renewables and digital services offerings, GE Renewable Energy has installed more than 400+ gigawatts of clean renewable energy and equipped more than 90 percent of utilities worldwide with its grid solutions. With nearly 40,000 employees present in more than 80 countries, GE Renewable Energy creates value for customers seeking to power the world with affordable, reliable and sustainable green electrons.
About GE Gas Power
GE Gas Power is a world leader in natural gas power technology, services, and solutions. Through relentless innovation and continuous partnership with our customers, we are providing more advanced, cleaner and efficient power that people depend on today and building the energy technologies of the future. With the world’s largest installed base of gas turbines and more than 200 million operating hours across GE’s installed fleet, we offer advanced technology and a level of experience that’s unmatched in the industry to build, operate, and maintain leading gas power plants.
