Kuchurgan power station
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Kuchurgan power station (Молдавская ГРЭС) is an operating power station of at least 710-megawatts (MW) in Slobozia, Transdniestr, Moldova with multiple units, some of which are not currently operating. It is also known as Moldavskaya power station.
Location
Table 1: Project-level location details
| Plant name | Location | Coordinates (WGS 84) |
|---|---|---|
| Kuchurgan power station | Slobozia, Transdniestr, Moldova | 46.629027, 29.939714 (exact) |
The map below shows the exact location of the power station.
Unit-level coordinates (WGS 84):
- 10, 11, 12, 9, Unit 1, Unit 2, Unit 3, Unit 4, Unit 5, Unit 6, Unit 7, Unit 8: 46.629027, 29.939714
Project Details
Table 2: Unit-level details
| Unit name | Status | Fuel(s) | Capacity (MW) | Technology | CHP | Start year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Operating[1][2][3] | fossil gas: natural gas, fossil liquids: fuel oil, coal: unknown[3][4] | 210[3] | steam turbine[3][4] | no[4] | 1974[3] |
| 11 | Operating[1][2][5][6][3] | fossil gas: natural gas, coal: subbituminous[3] | 250[3][4] | combined cycle[3][4] | no[4] | 1980[7][3] |
| 12 | Operating[1][2][5][6][3] | fossil gas: natural gas, coal: unknown[3] | 250[3][4] | combined cycle[3][4] | no[4] | 1982[7][3] |
| 9 | Mothballed[1][2][3] | fossil gas: natural gas, fossil liquids: fuel oil[3][4] | 210[3] | steam turbine[3][4] | no[4] | 1973[3] |
| Unit 1 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1964 |
| Unit 2 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1965 |
| Unit 3 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1965 |
| Unit 4 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1966 |
| Unit 5 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1967 |
| Unit 6 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1967 |
| Unit 7 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1970 |
| Unit 8 | Mothballed | coal: unknown, fossil gas: natural gas | 200 | subcritical | – | 1971 |
CHP is an abbreviation for Combined Heat and Power. It is a technology that produces electricity and thermal energy at high efficiencies. Coal units track this information in the Captive Use section when known.
Table 3: Unit-level ownership and operator details
| Unit name | Owner | Parent |
|---|---|---|
| 10 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| 11 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| 12 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| 9 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 1 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 2 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 3 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 4 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 5 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 6 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 7 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
| Unit 8 | Moldavskaya GRES CJSC [100%][8] | Inter RAO PJSC [100.0%] |
Project-level coal details
- Coal source(s): Dnestrovsc
Background
The Kuchurgan power station was originally commissioned in 1964, with eight subcritical thermal coal-fired units. 2 gas and oil-fired units and 2 gas-fired combined cycle units were put online later in the 1970s and 1980s. Water for cooling the plant is drawn from the Kuchurgan River estuary.[9]
The station is located in the unrecognized breakout region of Transnistria. Historically, the power station covered around 75% of Moldova's electricity consumption.[10]
The power station is 100% owned by the Russian Inter RAO since 2005.
In November 2008, Kuchurgan's parent company Inter RAO and Moldelectrica (a Moldovan electricity utility company) agreed to synchronize a few of the power plant's units with Romania's energy grid, through the 400 kV Kuchurgan–Vulcăneşti and Vulcăneşti–Isaccea transmission lines.[10]
According to World from Space, the Kuchurgan power plant is one of Moldova's three main hotspots for nitrogen dioxide pollution.[11]
Units
The power plant consists of 8 coal-fired units of 200MW each, two 210MW units run natural gas and fuel oil and two 250MW units run on natural gas.[12][13]
Electricity generation declined five times over the period of 1990-2005.[13] One source reported that from 1985 to 1995 all of the units of the power station were refurbished and can work on natural gas.[14]
A report prepared for the UN Economic Commission for Europe in 2009 stated that the units run on coal were put in conservation in 1999, and only the two units run on residual fuel oil and natural gas (Units 9 and 10) and the two energy units working in a mixed gas-steam cycle on natural gas (Units 11 and Unit 12), were being used.[13] As of November 2021, 4 units were reported to be in operation.[15]
The power plant has been mostly gas-fired while coal is used as a reserve fuel, according to 2022 media sources and the plant's website.[16][17][12] In 2018-2019, the share of natural gas in the fuel balance was over 99%.[18] In late 2022, coal reserves were said to be sufficient for only 2 months of operations in case of gas supply disruptions.[16][19] It appeared that only coal from the Donetsk region in Ukraine can be used at the plant.[16]
In 2021 the plant supplied 3,445 million kWh of power to Moldova.[20]
War in Ukraine
Before the war, the power station provided about 75% of the power needs of Moldova, relying on gas delivered by Russia's Gazprom.[21] As of early 2022, Moldova (a neighbour of Ukraine) was facing energy security concerns as the gas units ran on gas from Russia.[21]
Gazprom reduced gas supply to Moldova by 51% in November 2022, which in turn reduced supply of gas to Transnistria by 40%.[22] With reduced gas supplies and disruptions of imports of additional electricity from Ukraine, Moldova was scrambling to find sources of electricity and had to start buying about 80% of its power and half of its natural gas from Europe at higher prices.[23]
Until November 2022, Kuchurgan power station provided Moldova with over half its electricity. The Moldovan government used to have an annual contract to purchase electricity from the Kuchurgan, but the contract has not been renewed, while contracts for electricity imports from Romania have.[24][25] As a result, only one unit (10) of the power station has been operational, supplying only Transnistria.[26][27] At the same time the plant created coal reserves that would allow the plant to operate for 2 months in case of further gas shortages[17], although it was not clear whether any coal was used. During November 2022 the power station was a de facto distribution hub of power from Romania to the Moldovan capital Chisinau as the transmission line goes through Kuchurgan plant.[23] This created system imbalances resulting in system black-outs.
In December 2022, the Moldovan government agreed with Kuchurgan a monthly contract to renew electricity supply using the gas available from Russia.[28] As of December 2022, three units were operational, providing about 500MW of capacity - 150MW for Transnistria and 350MW to Moldova.[29][30] It was assumed that these are Unit 10 and Units 11 and 12. The monthly contract was renewed in January 2023.[31]
As of March 2023, the contract was extended by 6 months. The Kuchurgan plant was to supply 282 thousand MWh to Moldova each month, constituting 90% of the needs of Moldova.[32][33]
In October 2023, the Kuchurgan power station signed a long-term contract with Chisinau-based EnergoKom for the supply of electricity to Moldova until the end of 2024. The cost of electricity will remain unchanged at $66 per megawatt-hour. Based on the agreement, the plant will cover from 65% to 90% of Moldova's electricity needs in different months (on average - 80%).[34]
In March 2024, the government of Moldova announced the start of construction of a new power transmission line (158 km long) from Chisinau to Vulcanesti to supply electricity from Romania to the capital of the republic. The construction is scheduled to be completed by 2025 and will increase the energy security of the country. The Chisinau-Vulcanesti power line is part of a larger project financed by the International Development Association of the World Bank. It involves the modernization of power stations in Moldova, as well as dispatching and accounting systems for electricity. EUR 61 million has been allocated for these purposes. Currently, 95% of the electricity imported by Moldova comes from the Kuchurgan power station in the unrecognized Transnistria region. According to this media source, the plant still uses coal as one if its types of fuel.[35]
Articles and Resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 https://web.archive.org/web/20221202005659/https://novostipmr.com/ru/news/22-11-24/blekauta-mozhno-bylo-izbezhat. Archived from the original on 02 December 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 https://web.archive.org/web/20221205233503/https://1prime.ru/energy/20221124/838942681.html. Archived from the original on 05 December 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 (PDF) https://web.archive.org/web/20220901092003/http://www.clima.md/public/102/en/EnergyPolicyInformationForRegionalAnalysisMoldova.pdf. Archived from the original (PDF) on 01 September 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 https://web.archive.org/web/20220417101514/http://moldgres.com/o-predpriyatii/equipment. Archived from the original on 17 April 2022.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20230103212101/https://www.interfax.ru/world/879039. Archived from the original on 03 January 2023.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 6.0 6.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20221209075732/https://tass.ru/ekonomika/16497405. Archived from the original on 09 December 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 7.0 7.1 https://web.archive.org/web/20220707151151/http://moldgres.com/o-predpriyatii/nasha-istoriya. Archived from the original on 07 July 2022.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|archive-date=(help); Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 https://web.archive.org/web/20240522210037/https://moldgres.com/contacts. Archived from the original on 22 May 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "ЗАО "Молдавская ГРЭС"". moldgres.com (in русский). Retrieved 2021-06-25.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Kuchurgan power station - Wikipedia". en.wikipedia.org. Retrieved 2021-06-25.
- ↑ "Moldova". World from Space. Retrieved 2021-06-25.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Типы и характеристика оборудования". moldgres.md. Retrieved January 2023 via the Wayback Machine.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|access-date=(help)CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Republic of Moldova: National Energy Policy Information for Regional Analysis, Climate Change Office under the Ministry of Environment, Sep 2009
- ↑ "Молдавская ГРЭС — 50 лет в работе!". https://russos.livejournal.com/. 2017.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ "Молдавская ГРЭС после решения проблемы с поставками газа наращивает производство электроэнергии". https://infomarket.md/. November 2021.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 "Молдавская ГРЭС сможет проработать не больше двух месяцев в случае отключения газа". tass.ru. November 9, 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 17.0 17.1 "На Молдавской ГРЭС создали запасы угля на 2 месяца". neftegaz.ru. November 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "ОТЧЕТ по результатам анализа функционирования СИСТЕМЫ ЭКОЛОГИЧЕСКОГО МЕНЕДЖМЕНТА ЗАО «Молдавская ГРЭС» за 2019 год" (PDF). https://moldgres.com/. 2019.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website=|title=at position 6 (help)CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "МОЛДАВСКАЯ ГРЭС ОБЕСПЕЧЕНА УГЛЕМ НА 2,5 МЕСЯЦА РАБОТЫ". https://www.np-inform.com/. October 2022.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ "Источники электрической энергии". https://moldelectrica.md/. 2022.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ 21.0 21.1 Russia's war in Ukraine could be bad news for Moldova's energy ambitions, DW, March 10,2022
- ↑ "Молдавская ГРЭС сможет проработать не больше двух месяцев в случае отключения газа". TACC (in русский). Retrieved 2022-11-28.
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 "Just '17 People and a Dog' Stand Between Ukraine's Neighbor and Energy Meltdown". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
{{cite news}}: no-break space character in|title=at position 33 (help) - ↑ Ангелина Кирчу (2022-11-01). "Молдова не продлила контракт с Кучурганской ГРЭС о поставках электроэнергии на ноябрь - Nokta". Nokta (in русский). Retrieved 2022-11-28.
- ↑ "Andrei Spînu: Average purchase price of electricity is €180 per MWh". IPN. 2022-11-08.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Блэкаута можно было избежать". Novostipmr. 2022-11-24.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "В Приднестровье восстановили электроснабжение после аварии". ПРАЙМ (in русский). 2022-11-24. Retrieved 2022-11-28.
- ↑ "Молдавия и Приднестровье договорились продлить контракт о поставках электроэнергии и газа". neftegaz.ru. December 27, 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Приднестровье вновь поставляет электроэнергию на экспорт". https://novostipmr.com/. December 6, 2022.
{{cite web}}: External link in|website= - ↑ "В Приднестровье заявили, что возобновление работы Молдавской ГРЭС стабилизирует экономику". tass.ru. December 4, 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Кишинев подтвердил увеличение закупки электроэнергии у Приднестровья в январе". Interfax.ru. December 2022.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Victor Parlicov: Contract with Kuchurgan power plant will be renegotiated". ipn.md. 2023-03-17.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Кишинев продлил контракт с Молдавской ГРЭС на полгода". Interfax.ru. March 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Молдавская ГРЭС подписала новый контракт на поставку электроэнергии в Молдову". novostipmr.com. October 10, 2023. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Молдавия начала строительство новой ЛЭП для импорта электроэнергии из Румынии". TASS. March 29, 2024. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
Additional data
To access additional data, including interactive maps of the power stations, downloadable datasets, and summary data, please visit the Global Coal Plant Tracker and the Global Oil and Gas Plant Tracker on the Global Energy Monitor website.
