SCE&G operates eight simple-cycle units at various sites across the state with a capacity of 382 megawatts. In addition, the company operates the 875-megawatt Jasper Generating Plant, the newest power plant to join SCE&G’s fleet. The Jasper plant is a combined-cycle facility that uses three simple-cycle combustion turbines and one heat recovery steam generator to produce electricity.
Facts About Combustion Turbine Plants
- Combustion turbine plants use technology similar to a jet engine.
- Natural gas is the primary fuel, but many units can operate on #2 fuel oil as a backup.
- Although they utilize jet engine technology, combustion turbine plants are very quiet by comparison.
- Natural gas is an environmentally friendly fuel source that produces very little emissions.
- In a simple-cycle plant, the combustion of natural gas is the only source of electric generation. A combined-cycle plant utilizes the exhaust heat from multiple simple-cycle units to produce steam that, in turn, powers another turbine and generator. This means more electricity is produced without extra fuel costs.
How A Combustion Turbine Plant Works
- The combustion of natural gas, combined with compressed air, forces the turbine blades to spin.
- The spinning turbine is attached to the generator, which produces electricity.
- In a simple-cycle plant, exhaust heat is emitted through the stack.
- In a combined-cycle plant, exhaust heat from multiple simple-cycle plants is fed through a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG).
- The exhaust heat is used to turn water to steam, turning a turbine that is attached to a generator that produces electricity.
- Steam is cooled in a condenser by water from a nearby river or lake. The cooled steam, now water, returns to the HRSG and the cycle is repeated.
| SCE&G Internal Combustion Turbine Plants |
| Plant |
Capacity |
Location |
| Jasper Generating Plant |
875 MW |
Jasper County, SC |
