Siemens to supply latest coal gasification technology in the U.S.A.

With a gross capacity of 730 megawatt (MW) the advanced clean coal generating plant will be one of the first commercial-scale coal gasification plants with carbon capture and storage (CCS) capability in the U.S.A. Tenaska is the managing partner of the $3.5 billion facility which will convert Illinois coal into substitute natural gas (SNG).

The gas will be used for electricity generation or fed into the interstate natural gas pipeline system. TEC’s integrated gasification combined-cycle (IGCC) technology will capture and provide storage for at least fifty percent of the carbon dioxide (CO2). The TEC is scheduled to be completed in 2014.

For the TEC, being developed near Taylorville, Illinois, Siemens will provide equipment contracts and licensing agreements for four 500-megawatt-class gasifiers. These gasifiers have a daily processing capacity of as much as 2,000 metric tons of coal or petcoke. In the gasification process, a wide range of coals or other carbon-containing feedstocks, such as biomass or refinery residues, can be converted to syngas and subsequently cleaned to remove environmental pollutants such as sulfur, mercury and carbon dioxide. The syngas can then be utilized for environmentally compatible power generation in IGCC plants or as raw material for the chemical industry through the production of chemical feedstocks or synthetic fuels.

“In the future it will not be possible to meet the continuing growth in power demand without fossil fuels such as coal. The challenge is to significantly reduce the CO2 emissions resulting from the combustion of fossil fuels,” said Michael Suess, CEO of the Fossil Power Generation Division of Siemens Energy. “The Taylorville Energy Center project is an important step in this direction and we look forward to demonstrating how Siemens’ technology can provide a sustainable energy supply.”

“By capturing and storing at least 50 percent of the CO2 it produces, TEC will have emissions comparable to a natural gas-fueled plant. Achieving such a dramatic reduction in emissions by a coal-fed plant is a vital step in the global effort to combat climate change. Siemens is glad to be a major contributor to this important breakthrough,” Suess added.

Gasfication technology is part of the Siemens environmental portfolio with which the company earned revenues of nearly EUR19 billion in fiscal 2008, That is equivalent to about a quarter of Siemens total revenue and makes Siemens the world’s leading provider of eco-friendly technology.

The Siemens Energy Sector is the world’s leading supplier of a complete spectrum of products, services and solutions for the generation, transmission and distribution of power and for the extraction, conversion and transport of oil and gas. In fiscal 2008 (ended September 30), the Energy Sector had revenues of approximately EUR22.6 billion and received new orders totaling approximately EUR33.4 billion and posted a profit of EUR1.4 billion. On September 30, 2008, the Energy Sector had a work force of approximately 83,500.