Chiba Thermal Power Station, is an operational

thermal power station A thermal power station, also known as a thermal power plant, is a type of power station in which the heat energy generated from various fuel sources (e.g., coal, natural gas, nuclear fuel, etc.) is converted to electrical energy. The heat ...

located in the city of Chiba, Japan. It is owned and operated by

JERA JERA () is a 50-50 joint venture between TEPCO Fuel & Power, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tokyo Electric Power Company, and Chubu Electric Power, founded in April 2015. The company assumed ownership and operation of all of Tokyo Electric and Chu ...

, with a maximum output of 4380 MW. Originally built in the late 1950s as a coal-burning plant, it was later converted to a plant burning

liquefied natural gas Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4, with some mixture of ethane, C2H6) that has been cooled to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the volume o ...

in 2000.

History

Chiba Thermal Power Station began operations in the late 1950s as a 600MW capacity coal fired power plant. It had four units however due to aging facilities and increasing demand for electricity, in 2000 the plant was renovated to a

combined cycle power plant A combined cycle power plant is an assembly of heat engines that work in tandem from the same source of heat, converting it into mechanical energy. On land, when used to make electricity the most common type is called a combined cycle gas turb ...

and fuelled with Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). Groups 1 and 2 were constructed in 2000 with a maximum output of 2880 MW. In 2011, as part of an emergency plan to supply power after the

Great East Japan Earthquake Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements * Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size * Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent People * List of people known as "the Great" * Artel Great (bo ...

, three

gas turbine A gas turbine or gas turbine engine is a type of Internal combustion engine#Continuous combustion, continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas gene ...

systems were constructed within 4 months. From 2012 to 2014, a more advanced combined cycle system was added as group 3. This added an additional 1500MW capacity.

Power generation

When Chiba Thermal Power Station was renovated to a combined cycle power plant, Groups 1 & 2 were constructed. Each has a total power output of 1440 MW. Group 3 was constructed outdoors, as opposed to indoors like Groups 1 and 2, due to the need for it to be built quickly after the Great East Japan Earthquake. Group 3 added a power output of 1500MW. The total power output of the station is 4380MW and the site covers approximately 760,000 square metres of land. LNG is supplied by pipeline from terminals located at Sodegaura Power Station and

Futtsu Power Station The Futtsu Power Station (富津火力発電所) is the fourth largest natural gas, gas-fired power station in the world, located in Futtsu, Chiba, Futtsu, Japan. The power station operates at by utilizing four groups of units, with 14 combine ...

and the plant outputs its cooling water into the nearby sea.

Historic power generation

Group 1 of the original coal-fired power station began operations in April 1957, and in following years more groups were added, ending with Group 4 in November 1959. Originally burning coal, the plant later switched to

crude oil Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring u ...

. Due to aging facilities and the increasing demand for electricity, in 2000 the plant was renovated and a new combined cycle power generation system was installed (see above). Chiba power station - aerial

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{Cite web, title=Chiba Thermal Power Station, url=https://www.jera.co.jp/static/files/english/business/thermal-power/list/pdf/chiba_eng.pdf, access-date=2020-03-01, website=Jera, language=en Buildings and structures in Chiba (city) Coal-fired power stations in Japan Natural gas-fired power stations in Japan Energy infrastructure completed in 2000 2000 establishments in Japan

History

Power generation

Historic power generation

See also

References