DOE/National Energy Technology Laboratory, P.O. Box 10940, MS 921-107, Pittsburgh, PA 15236-0940

A -- SPECIAL STUDIES AND ANALYSIS, POTENTIAL SOURCES SOUGHT SOL DE-AM26-99FT40465 DUE 061500 POC Mark Freier -- AC 304/285-4759 WEB: Special Studies and Analysis, http://www.usa.gov/procurement/index.html. E-MAIL: Special Studies and Analysis, mark.freier@netl.doe.gov. The U. S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) seeks volunteer U. S. electric power generating companies to participate in a site-specific study. This study would develop a conceptual design and economic evaluation for repowering of one or more units at the participant's existing generation site, with Combustion High Performance Power Systems (CHIPPS) technology. Preferred units for this study should have the following characteristics: (1) coal-fueled plant, (2) currently operating, (3) subcritical steam conditions, (4) 100 to 400 MW single unit, or multiple units with combined capacity in that range, (5) medium to high-sulfur coal, and (6) a desire to upgrade the proposed unit(s) in order to improve output, economics, environmental performance, and/or dispatch order in the 2004-2010 time frame. CHIPPS is a new type of combined cycle technology that allows integration of a high-temperature gas turbine with a coal-fueled, High Temperature Advanced Furnace in an Indirectly Fired Combined Cycle configuration. Two manufacturers have different approaches to the gas turbine integration with the existing equipment. One has an all coal-fueled approach that provides syngas to the gas turbine, and fires the existing boiler with char. The other uses an indirectly-fired combined cycle that heats compressed air in a high temperature advanced furnace followed by further boosting of the temperature by a gas-fired duct heater. The air is expanded in a gas turbine to generate more than half of the cycle's power output. The turbine exhaust and the flue gas are used to raise steam for the steam cycle. Repowering with CHIPPS should result in an improvement in energy efficiency of about 6+ percentage points, a 50+ percent increase in output, improved environmental performance with lower SOx, NOx, CO2, and particulate emissions, with an expected cost per combined kW of about $800/kW. CHIPPS is under pilot plant development testing by DOE and industry. The proposed concept assessment would expand on this base of information, and evalulate the merit of using repowering the participant's unit as a possible path to introduce CHIPPS technology to full-scale commercial service. DOE will not provide funding to the participant, but provides the engineering and economic assessment to the participant at no cost. This is a concept evaluatuion, so the power plant site will not actually be modified. DOE provides the services of an A/E contractor to develop a conceptual design and economic evaluation using procedures familiar to electric generating company planners. The DOE team evaluates the technical requirements for equipment/plant compatibility as well as the economics and schedule aspects of the repowering project. The team establishes the advantages and practical aspects of repowering with CHIPPS. Issues such as remaining equipment life, demolition requirements, spare part requirements, permitting, and dispatch requirements are addressed. The DOE team develops sufficient detail to show the feasibility of repowering the participant's unit(s) with CHIPPS. At the end of the project, DOE supplies the participant with a report summarizing the concept, its economics, and conclusions about its feasibility at the site. The participant will have a major role in determining the final plant configuration chosen for the design concept study. If selected, the power industry participant is expected to actively support the study at their site. Initially, representatives of DOE and its A/E contractor will visit the site to gather necessary information about the plant. Additional information and site visits may be required as the study progresses. The participant is expected to cooperate by providing plant and operating information to support the A/E contractor's evaluation. Representatives of the participant are encouraged to be co-authors and to present at least two technical papers at selected power conferences. The DOE team will assist the participant in developing a generation production costing forecast evaluation. The participant's forecast will establish the expected capacity factor and financial return prospects for each CHIPPS option for the unit dispatched in the participant's electric sales market, using the participant's particular operating environment and expectation of demand and electric sale price. Electric power companies interested in this volunteer partnership with the DOE to develop conceptual designs for CHIPPS repowering should respond in writing within 30 days of this announcement. A company wishing to participate should provide a point of contact and company background information, along with information regarding the unit(s) and site proposed for repowering, such as coal fuel type, limestone or dolomite availability, repowering unit size (MW), condition of steam turbine and boiler, throttle and reheat steam conditions, recent heat rate and capacity factors, site plan drawing, availability of alternate fuels, such as natural gas, fuel oil, or other solid fuels, and other information which the company deems necessary to the decision process. Companies may submit information on multiple sites for consideration. A team of DOE and contractor personnel will review the responses and select one or more sites for the study. Other sites may be selected at a later date depending upon the program's success and funding availability. All power company participant information will be handled under policies that will provide strict nondisclosure of information that the companies identify as being "company proprietary information". Reply to Dr. Mark D. Freier, U. S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory, 3610 Collins Ferry Road, Morgantown, WV 26507-0880. Dr. Freier may be contacted by phone at: (304) 285-4759, or by E-mail at: mark.freier@netl.dov.gov. Posted 05/17/00 (W-SN455797). (0138)

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