Uniper has been awarded the contract from grid operator TenneT to build a gas power plant with a capacity of 300 MW in Irsching near Ingolstadt. Uniper will build and operate the plant. Starting October 2022, the power plant will be on standby to serve as a âsafety cushionâ? by supplying power in special emergency circumstances. As a âspecial grid facilityâ?, it will not serve the market and will instead be available on short notice any time system reliability is at risk.
In late June 2018 TenneT, together with grid operators Amprion and TransnetBW, issued a call for bids throughout Europe for a total capacity of 1200 MW for special grid facilities pursuant to § 11(3) EnWG [Energy Industry Act] without reference to any particular type of technology. 300 MW will be assigned to each of four regions in southern Germany.
Uniper already operates several units at the site. The Ulrich Hartmann plant (Irsching 4, 561 MW) went into operation in 2011 and, with an efficiency rate of 60.4%, is one of the most efficient combined cycle facilities worldwide. Block 5 (likewise combined cycle, 846 MW) became operational in 2010 and, with its efficiency rating of 59.7%, is also one of the most modern combined cycle plants in Europe.
Irsching 4 and 5 are currently operated under the so-called grid reserve directive (Netzreserveverordnung). They therefore will be used only when their output is needed to maintain grid stability. The oil-fired block 3 (415 MW) was slated to be permanently shut down in 2012. Owing to the grid situation in southern Germany, the facility has been held in reserve since then for grid operator TenneT.
