The Electrica Group has signed the contract for the development of a new high-efficiency cogeneration plant in Craiova, based on natural gas-fired thermal engines, which will provide thermal energy for the city’s centralized thermal energy supply system (SACET) and electricity to the National Energy System. Since the design phase, the plant has been designed as a flexible unit, hydrogen-ready and equipped with autonomous starting capacity (black-start).
The thermal energy produced will feed Craiova’s centralized system, which currently serves approximately 53,000 homes and public institutions, replacing a source currently based on coal. For the city’s residents, the project means the transition from an infrastructure that has reached the end of its life to a new capacity, sized for the real heat demand and built according to the European standards in force. By replacing lignite as the base source, the project eliminates coal combustion in Craiova and significantly reduces its associated emissions and local pollution, with a direct effect on the city’s air quality.
From a technical point of view, the project provides for an installed electrical power of approximately 82 MW and a thermal capacity of approximately 179 Gcal/h (approximately 208 MWt), obtained through high-efficiency cogeneration, complemented by peak/reserve thermal energy production facilities.
In addition, the plant will be equipped with thermal energy storage capacity, which allows the decoupling of heat production from electricity: the engines can operate to harness electricity during peak price hours, and the heat produced simultaneously is stored and subsequently delivered to the system, depending on actual demand. This solution increases the economic efficiency of the investment and, by optimizing the cost of thermal energy production, can support the maintenance of competitive heat costs in the city system.
The engines are designed to run on natural gas, with the possibility of using hydrogen in the mix as it becomes available on an industrial scale. The investment thus has a clear long-term decarbonisation path and remains compatible with the evolution of the European regulatory framework, protecting the value of the asset throughout its lifetime.
The plant will be designed to start “from a black-start”, without external power, and to contribute to restarting the grid in the event of a black-out. Based on the same class of gas engines as the European reference designs, the unit is designed to reach full power in around two minutes from start-up and to synchronize with the grid in less than 30 seconds, a reaction time essential for security of supply and grid stability.
Through this configuration, the plant combines the high efficiency of cogeneration, with high overall efficiency and low emissions compared to the technologies it replaces, with a firm and flexible capacity that offers system technology services and participates in the balancing market, supporting the integration of renewable sources. The black-start capacity contributes to the resilience of the system and the restart of the network in the event of a failure, and the hydrogen-ready solution opens a path to long-term decarbonization.
The project will be carried out in two stages: in the first stage, the hot water boilers (CAF) will be installed, which will ensure the capacity to produce thermal energy, and in the second stage, the cogeneration engines will also be put into operation, completing the ensemble with the simultaneous, high-efficiency production of electricity and thermal energy.
The project is part of the Electrica Group’s strategy to develop its own production capacities, alongside the renewable energy portfolio and the storage projects under execution. The direction is consistent: new, flexible capacities, close to consumption and sized for an energy system in which the share of variable sources continues to grow. The Electrica Group’s ambition is for this ensemble – high-efficiency cogeneration, thermal storage and hydrogen preparation – to become one of the most modern energy hubs in Romania.