20 COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006

The“story”behindtheAstoriaEnergy Project of greatestinteresttopowerprofession-als is a relatively short one

in terms of words; photos tell it all.Simply put, the positive schedule,quality, and cost impacts achievedby taking modularization to a newlevel inbuildingAstoriahave,with-out question, advanced the state-of-the-art for the construction of newpowerplantswithdeep-wateraccess.

Major contractors—in particularTheShawGroupInc,BatonRouge,La;ALSTOM,Windsor,Ct; andMarley-SPXCoolingTechnologies,OverlandPark,Kan—werekey to thedevelop-mentof jumbomodules thatenabledthe transformation of a marginalindustrialsite intoanoperatingpow-erplantinlessthantwoyearsafterthefirstpilewasdriven(Figs1-3).

Byfosteringanenvironmentthatrewarded engineering innovation,SCSEnergyLLC(sidebar)wasableto develop a nominal 500-MW com-bined-cycle plant vital to the sup-plyof reliable,affordable,andcleanpowerforNewYorkCitythatother-wisemightnothavebeeneconomicaltobuild.Forthisachievement,Asto-riaEnergywasselectedtoreceivetheCOMBINEDCYCLEJournal’s 2007PacesetterPlantAward.

Astoria Energy is a two-phaseproject. SCS Energy has permits inhandforasecond500-MWcombinedcycle at the site when its output isneeded.TimBauer, theSCSprojectmanager for Astoria, thinks thatmightbesummer2010,whichseemsrealisticfortworeasons:n Toensureelectric-systemreliabil-

ity, state regulations require thatat least 80% of the energy con-sumed inNewYorkCitymustbeproducedwithinthefiveboroughs.Whilethecitymayimportaportionofitselectricsupply,transmissionlinesbringingpowerintoNYCare

constrained and congested. Thusthe reliability of this approach isquestionable, favoring in-citygen-erationtosatisfynativeload.

n The New York Power Authorityhascommittedtoretiringits885-MWCharlesPolettiPowerProject,locatedaboutamilefromAstoriaEnergy, no later than 2010. ThisagreementwasstrucktoallowthePowerAuthoritytobuildacleanerand more efficient 500-MW com-bined-cycle plant at the Polettisite.Thatfacilitybeganoperatingin2006.Gas and electric connections

are in close proximity to AstoriaEnergy. The plant receives its fuelvia Consolidated Edison Co of NYInc’s main natural-gas line locateda couple of city blocks away. Theelectrical grid is accessed throughConEd’s Astoria East Substationaboutahalfmilefromtheplant.

MostelectricitygeneratedbyAsto-ria Energy is purchased by ConEdundera10-yrpowerpurchaseagree-ment which calls for the delivery of500MWfor16hourseachweekday.The utility has access to power forthe other weekday hours and onweekends. Bauer noted that powerprices in the city remain high onweekends,sothat’sgoodbusinessfortheindependentproducer.Typically,one gas turbine and the steam tur-bineoperatethroughthenightdailyexceptwhenthereisnocallforweek-end power. Then the facility wouldshutdownFridayeveningandreturntoserviceMondaymorning.

AdditionalrevenuecomesfromthesaleofancillaryservicestotheNewYorkIndependentSystemOperator.These services primarily are spin-ning reserve, reactivepower (VArs),andsystemvoltagecontrol.

Plant design is relatively stan-dard fora2×17FA-powered com-bined cycle. Use of proven equip-

mentandtheabilitytoworkaroundstartupissuesaretworeasonsforanenviable 94% availability over thefirst six months of operation. Notethat lump-sum turnkey contractsgoverned theprincipal components:gas turbine/generators (GEEnergy,Atlanta), heat-recovery steam gen-erators(HRSGs,ALSTOM),andair-cooledcondensers(Marley-SPX).

GTsaredual-fuelunitstoenhancesystem reliability. For example, oilwould be burned if the natural-gaspipeline experiences operating dif-ficultyorifthepriceforgasrisessig-nificantly above that for oil. Opera-

Astoria Energy ProjectQueens, NY

SCS Energy LLC

Takingmodularizationtothenextlevel

1. An oil terminal occupying the future home of the Astoria Energy Project had to be demolished before site development work could get underway. This took three months

2. The site development effort got underway in spring 2004

COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006 21

tion on ultra-low-sulfur distillate ispermittedfor720hr/yr.

Theplanthasworkedproactivelyto avoid compressor problems thathaveplaguedsomeunitsinthe7FAfleet. Change-out of the p-cut Row0 compressor blades on one unitwaspartofthis.Additionally,onlinewater washing, thought to be theprimary cause of compressor-bladedeterioration is not done. AstoriaEnergyhasaCSA(ContractualSer-viceAgreement)withtheOEMthatincludesTIL (Technical InformationLetter)service.

The site and union support.

TheAstoriaplantwasbuiltona23-acresitethathadbeenhometoanoilterminalandincludedapiercapableof accommodating ocean-going ves-sels.Most of theexisting structureswere demolished in preparation forplant construction, front-end workthat took about three months tocomplete.Two6-million-galoiltankswere retained for use by the dual-fuel-capableGTs.

According to Bauer, who hadworked for a major utility and anarchitect/engineer during a careerin the electricpower industry span-ningmorethan30years,ittookonly23monthsfromconstructionstarttocommercial operation. This achieve-ment testifies to the success of themodularizationeffortchampionedbyEPC contractor, The Shaw Group,and to the high level of cooperationaccorded by the buildings tradesunions affiliated with the GreaterNew York Building & ConstructionTradesCouncil.

That umbrella labor organiza-tion, under the direction of Presi-dent Ed Malloy, gave its full sup-port to theAstoriaEnergyProject.The skilled craft workforce, whichaveraged400menandwomenandpeaked at 700, was dedicated tothe project and no labor shortag-es or stoppages were experiencedthroughout the term of construc-tion,saysJohnOliver,Shaw’sproj-ectmanagerforAstoria.

Perhaps more impressive thanthesuccessfulon-timecompletionofthe project to a challenging sched-ule, continuesOliver,was its safety

record. The recordable incident rateof1.92bestedbyawidemarginthehistorical 6.4 national and 8.6 NYCrates. Additionally, the lost-timerate of 0.57 was significantly betterthanthenational(2.4)andNYC(4.1)figures.

The safety record and innovativeconstructiontechniquesthatcharac-terized theAstoriaprojectearned itNew York Construction magazine’s“Best of 2006” project-of-the-yearaward in the industrial project cat-egory.Theregionalperiodicalispub-lished by The McGraw-Hill Compa-nies,NewYork.

HRSGs delivered fully assembled Itwouldbesurprisingifanyonewithpower-industry experience did notmarvel at the engineering achieve-ment in building a ready-to-installF-classHRSGabout theheightofa12-storybuildingandweighing2500metric tons, transporting it 12,000milesbyship,andthen“rolling”theboilerintoplaceandloweringitontothefoundation.

Ian Lutes, an ALSTOM salesdirector with decades of industryexperience, and Mark Keough, thecompany’sprojectmanagerforAsto-

3. Astoria Energy was built in less than two years. Commercial opera-tion began in May 2006

Who is SCS Energy?SCS Energy LLC, a private energy development company headquar-tered in Concord, Mass, was the lead developer of Astoria Energy, a project it conceived in 1999. It also is an active owner, and along with partner AE Investor LLC, welcomed several new investors to the proj-ect in spring 2004—including CDP Capital-Americas, SNC-Lavalin Generation Inc, and Energy Inves-tors Fund Group on behalf of US Power Fund LP. All investors are represented on the facility’s board of directors.

The plant is operated by North American Energy Services (NAES), Issaquah, Wash. Normal comple-ment is an O&M staff of 25 and a four-person management team. NAES reports to the facility’s gener-al manager, the person responsible to the board for the asset.

Long on experience, SCS previ-ously developed such projects as the 725-MW Marcus Hook Cogen-eration Plant for Sunoco Inc and the 525-MW Newington Energy LLC combined cycle for Consolidated Edison Development Inc.

22 COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006

Fig 4 Fig 5

Fig 6

Fig 9Fig 8Fig 7

COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006 23

ria Energy, told the editors of theCOMBINED CYCLE Journal thatthe OEM began thinking about theviability of delivering an assembledHRSG well before this opportunityarose. Positive results from stressanalyses and engineering studiesprovided the confidence to proposea fully assembled, pressure-testedboilerfortheQueensfacility.

ALSTOM and some others hadplenty of experience in shippingassembled oil/gas-fired boilers up toabout500,000lb/hrandindeliveringHRSGsinseveralmodulesforonsiteassembly.ButnoUSboilermanufac-turerhad ever done what ALSTOMproposedforAstoria;themainsteamflowfromeachtriple-pressureHRSGaloneisnearly440,000lb/hrwithoutduct firing. Given schedule and siteconstraints, Shaw and SCS Energy

tooktheproposalseriouslyandwerepositivelyinclined.

But there was an immense amount of work involved in goingfromapositivereceptiontoproposalacceptance. SCS Energy’s projectwouldbeontheline,aswouldShaw’sreputation and ALSTOM’s reputa-tion. The insurance companies andfinancialinstitutionshadtheirques-tions,andmorequestionsafterthose.Riskmitigationwasaprimaryfocusattheevaluationstage.

Confirmation of the experienceand technology that ALSTOM andShaw were bringing to the tableobviously were part of this evalua-tion.Butthatwasrelativelysimple:Both companies are recognized bythe industries they serve as world-class.Thebigunknowninthepowerindustrywastherealriskassociated

withshippingbothboilersacrossthePacific, through the Panama Canal,and up the Atlantic’s west coast toNYC—inthesameship.

Marine surveyors wereengagedtochartthebestroute.JumboShip-ping,headquarteredinTheNether-landsandworkingforALSTOM,wasresponsible fortheoverallshipandbarge arrangements. This includedthemarinearchitectsandengineerscharged with developing plans forstiffening the vessel thought bestsuited for the assignment and forsecuringtheHRSGsintheship.

ALSTOM’s engineers developedplans for reinforcing the boilers forseatravel,forprovidingmoreliftingarea to accommodate the transport-ers required tomove theHRSGsonandofftheshipandtotheirfounda-tionsashore,and forpreventingthemovement of critical componentsduringtransport.

Marineandboilerengineerswerechallenged to ensure that the shipanditscargowouldsurviveaForce10 storm, one producing forces atsea greater than those experiencedonlandduringamajorearthquake.One action taken: To protect flex-ible pressure parts against suchan eventuality required, amongother things, the strategic place-mentoftemporarybeamsinsidetheHRSG,wedgedagainstthemodulesto restrict themovementofmoduletubeassembliessubjectedtoocean-goingforces.

LutesandKeoughpoint out thatthe transport of very large loads,while perhaps new to the electricpowerindustry,isrelativelycommonin the oil and gas industry. Docu-mentedexperienceexistsontheship-mentofdrillingplatformsthatweighupwardsof10,000metrictons.

One challenge for ALSTOM wasto identify an ASME Code-qualifiedfabricationfacilitywithacompetentworkforce and direct ocean accessthatwasexperiencedinthehandlingof heavy and complex prefabricatedcomponents—such as those used indeep-water drilling and in processplants. In PT Gunanusa Energy,

Fig 10

Fig 12Fig 11 Fig 13

24 COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006

theyfoundanindependentfacilityonIndonesia’sJavaIslandthatsatisfiedtheselectioncriteria.

Note that ALSTOM is familiarwith the work practices in Indone-sian fabrication shops and with thegeneral capabilities of the country’sskilled workforce because it has apressure-partsmanufacturingopera-tiononJava.

Ocean voyage. TheHRSGswerecompletelyfabricatedinIndonesia—including instrumentation, insula-tion, etc. Even the Code-requiredhydro was conducted there. Doingthisworkoffsiteensuredsaferwork-ingconditionsforfielderectioncrewsin Astoria because the labor den-sityrequiredtobuildaconventionalHRSG in a constrained area wasreducedsignificantly.

The two-month journey to NYC,with intermediate inspection stopsinHonoluluandthePanamaCanal,began by loading the HRSGs ontoDockwise Shipping BV’s (The Neth-

erlands) floating dry dock shipEnterprise (Figs4,5).Note that theangle-shaped members (outriggers)atthebaseoftheboilerwereaddedtoincreasetheeffectivewidthoftheHRSG thereby accommodating thefour lines of transporters necessaryto lift and move these units. Thecylindrical restraints between theoutriggers and ship were welded onbothendstopreventtheHRSGsfrommovingrelativetotheship.

Theship,whichhadadraftwhenloaded of about 16.5 ft, arrived inNYC the morning of July 7, 2005(Fig6)andanchoredofftheQueensjobsite later that day. Had the tripupriverbeenathightide,thetopoftheboilerswouldhavebeen justsixfeetbelowthebottomofthedecksup-portsfortheBrooklynBridge.

The four lines of transportersrequired to offload the boilers werewaiting when the ship arrived (Fig7).ModuleshadbeenbargedtoAsto-ria prior to the ship’s arrival and

assembled, for a combined total of100 axles (four tires per axle). Thetransporters, along with guidanceon the lifting and movement of theheavy loads, were provided by UK-based Abnormal Load EngineeringLtd.

Offloading. Transporters werebrought aboard the ship and posi-tionedunderthefirstboiler.Hydrau-licliftersonthetransporterspickedtheHRSGoffthedecksupportsandit was rolled off the ship and ontoabarge(Figs8,9).Afterthebargewas brought dockside, the boilerswere rolledoffandontoa concreteunloading pad poured adjacent tothe pier. Linkspan permitted theunimpededmovementoftheHRSGfrom barge to shore-side platform(Figs10,11).

Finally, the HRSG was rolled toits respective foundation a coupleof hundred yards from the water,loweredintopositionandweldedinplace (Figs 12, 13). Note the turn-

Fig 14 Fig 15

Fig 17

Fig 18Fig 16

For over a century, Shaw has been committed to providing

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our legacy of excellence continues today with our premier

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Astoria Energy (above) 540 MW combined-cycle power plant in Queens, NY.Currant Creek (left) 525 MW combined-cycle power plant in Mona, Utah.

CombinedCycle_Ad_rev1.indd 1 1/10/2007 3:46:30 PM

26 COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006

ing capability of the transporter inFig12.

Regarding schedule, it took justaboutadaytogetoneHRSGashoreandanothertorollitintoplace.Theprocess was then repeated for thesecondboiler.

Stacks and ductwork. Onceyou prove you can handle a fullyassembled boiler, stacks and duct-workmustbelikechild’splay.Theyweredeliveredinlargemodulesbyaself-geared ship and unloaded withtheassistanceofalargebargecrane.Lower stack section is in Fig 14,mid section in Fig 15. Sections aremoved near their respective boilersinFig16,settingof themidsectionisshowninFig17.Weldingofamid-sectionjointisinFig18.

Outlet duct section is mobilizednearthepierinFig19;anotherpartof the outlet duct is moved to theboilerforinstallationinFig20.Finalfit-up of one exhaust duct is showninFig21.

ACCs reduce water consumption by about 90%In years past, air-cooled condensers(ACCs)generallywerespecifiedonlyforpowerplants inaridareas.Theiruseisfarmorecommontodaythankstotheadoptionofstrictrulesgovern-ingwateruseinmanynon-aridareas,aswellastheenvironmentalimpactsofdrift,plume,andblowdownassoci-atedwithwetcoolingtowers.

It’s no secret that in the NYCarea ACCs are favored by sitingauthorities. All three of the majornewpowerplantsinstalledinthelast25yearsorso—KeySpanCorp’s250-MWRavenswoodexpansioninearly2004, theNewYorkPowerAuthori-ty’s500-MWexpansionatitsCharlesPolettisiteinQueenslastyear,andAstoriaEnergy—arecombinedcyclesequippedwithMarleyair-cooledcon-densers.

The firm’s experience in success-fully delivering prefabricated ACCmodulesbybargeandinstallingthemon the roof of the new Ravenswoodunitdemonstrateditsabilitytohan-dlethemodularization,delivery,anderectionchallengesatAstoria.Italso

helpedthatShawwastheEPCcon-tractor for Ravenswood and alreadyknewwellMarley’scapabilities.

Thetwocompaniescollaborativelydecided that the optimum solutionwastobuildthemodulesforthe24-cellACC inVirginia, barge them tothe site in 300-ton pairs, and movethemodulesbytransporterandcraneintoposition.Marley’scontractwasaturn-keyagreement.

TheACCportionoftheprojectisdescribedvisuallyinFigs22-29.Themoduleassemblysiteisshownfirst,steam-duct fabrication in Fig 23, atypical delivery next, offloading inAstoriainFig25,themammothsizeof the steam duct (maximum diam-eterwas21ft),pickingamoduleandplacing it on the stick-like supportstructure(Fig27),installationofthesteam duct in Fig 28, and the com-pletedcondenserinFig29.

Despite a level and diversity ofactivity reminiscent of the Nor-mandy beachhead during the inva-sion of Europe more than 60 yearsago, Shaw’s Oliver said there werefew coordination issues during theentire project. Careful planning,experiencedcontractors,andknowl-edgeable craft personnel enabledAstoria’s construction to proceedsmoothly.

Fig 19

Fig 20

Fig 21

Fig 22 Fig 23

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28 COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006

Balance-of-plant modulesPipe racks, the backbone of theplant’s infrastructure, were con-structedatShawGlobalEnergySer-vicesInc’sfabshopinDelcambre,La,and barged to the site. While pipe-rack modularization is relativelystandard today, the piping in theseassembliesalsowasheat-tracedandinsulatedintheshop.

Nine modules, including a 300-tonmonsterdesignedtomeetuniqueneedsoftheproject,werefabricatedatthefacility.Fig30showsafewofthe smaller racks on a barge along-side Global; super rack is unloaded(Fig31) and transported (Fig32) towhereitwillbeinstalled(Fig33).

Modular power distribution centers(PDCs)andtheplant’scon-trolroomweredesignedandbuiltinHouston. They were pre-wired andpre-tested before shipment, therebymitigatingpotential safety issues inAstoria. How the main PDC looked

Fig 25

Fig 26 Fig 27

Fig 29Fig 28

COMBINED CYCLEJOURNAL,FourthQuarter2006 29

after the first week of assembly isshowninFig34.

Ocean-goingbargewastheprima-ry mode of transport for this equip-ment, but trucks were used to haulsome of the small PDCs like theboiler distribution centers shown inFig35.Thecontrolbuildingismovedto its foundationinFig36.Inafewcases, shipping constraints dictatedthatsomeofthePDCsbeshippedinmultiple pieces and reassembled atthesite.Example:Twohalvesofoneof the two ACC PDCs are joined inFig 37 and the assembled structure

isskiddedintoplace(Fig38).Auxiliary systems. Modulariza-

tionofauxiliarysystemsandequip-ment was maximized to the extentpracticable,continuesShaw’sOliver.Examples include the boiler feed-waterpumpskid inFigs39and40;fuel-gas compression module in Fig41; fuel-gas heater and filter skidsin Figs 42 and 43, respectively; theammonia skid serving one HRSG’sSCR(selectivecatalyticreductionforNOxemissionscontrol)systeminFig44;andthefire-waterpumphouseinFig45.ccj

Fig 30 Fig 31 Fig 32

Fig 33 Fig 34 Fig 35

Fig 36 Fig 37 Fig 38

Fig 39 Fig 40 Fig 41

Fig 42 Fig 43 Fig 44

Fig 45