
The Delimara power station is located near
Marsaxlokk
Marsaxlokk () is a small, traditional fishing village in the Southern Region, Malta, Southern Region of Malta. It has a harbour, and is a tourist attraction known for its views, fishing and history. As of March 2014, the village had a populati ...
in the southeast of Malta and is the newest power plant in Malta. It was put into operation in 1992 and redeveloped to LNG in the 2010s.
Setup
The Delimara Power Station includes four electricity generation plants, with a total combined nominal installed capacity of 537.8 MW.
[Enemalta Delimara power station]
The two units in regular operation are:
* DPS Phase 4, a 205 MW
natural gas
Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...
-fired CCGT system commissioned in 2017, operated by
Electrogas Malta
* DPS Phase 3, a 152.8 MW diesel engine plant from 2012, re-fitted to run on
natural gas
Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...
and
gasoil
Fuel oil is any of various fractions obtained from the distillation of petroleum (crude oil). Such oils include distillates (the lighter fractions) and residues (the heavier fractions). Fuel oils include heavy fuel oil (bunker fuel), marine fuel ...
, instead of heavy
fuel oil
Fuel oil is any of various fractions obtained from the distillation of petroleum (crude oil). Such oils include distillates (the lighter fractions) and residues (the heavier fractions). Fuel oils include heavy fuel oil (bunker fuel), marine f ...
, in 2017, operated by Delimara 3 Power Generation Ltd
The power station also includes two
gasoil
Fuel oil is any of various fractions obtained from the distillation of petroleum (crude oil). Such oils include distillates (the lighter fractions) and residues (the heavier fractions). Fuel oils include heavy fuel oil (bunker fuel), marine fuel ...
-fired plants, which are used as standby power generation capacity during emergencies or lack of other power sources, for a combined nominal capacity of 180 MW:
[
* 1994 DPS Phase 2A OCGT
* 1999 DPS Phase 2B CCGT
The power station is connected to Malta's electricity network through four 132 kV and six 33 kV outgoing feeder cables.][
]
History
The power plant was put into operation in 1992. The 150-meter high chimney of the power plant is the tallest structure in Malta.
Two steam power plants fuelled with heating oil
Heating oil is any petroleum product or other oil used for heating; it is a fuel oil. Most commonly, it refers to low viscosity grades of fuel oil used for furnaces or boilers for home heating and in other buildings. Home heating oil is often ...
, each with an electrical output of 60 MW, have been in operation since 1992. The heating oil has a sulfur
Sulfur ( American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphur ( Commonwealth spelling) is a chemical element; it has symbol S and atomic number 16. It is abundant, multivalent and nonmetallic. Under normal conditions, sulfur atoms ...
content of 1%.
Two gas turbine power plants, each with an output of 37 MW, have been in operation since 1994.
The total power of the power plant is 304 MW.
As the technology of the Marsa power plant is out of date, closure of the plant was discussed ahead of Malta's entry into the EU. Part of the electricity production was relocated to the more modern Delimara power plant and the EU limit values for emissions could thus be reached. However, the fine dust emissions of both plants did not yet meet the EU standard.
The total carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . It is made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalent bond, covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in a gas state at room temperature and at norma ...
emissions of the power plant in 2006 amounted to 810,477 tons.
In September 2008, a routine check revealed that a small amount of water and heating oil
Heating oil is any petroleum product or other oil used for heating; it is a fuel oil. Most commonly, it refers to low viscosity grades of fuel oil used for furnaces or boilers for home heating and in other buildings. Home heating oil is often ...
had leaked out. The oil load was at least ten cubic meters of heating oil. Neither the environment nor the power plant or its personnel suffered any damage, but the competent authorities were nevertheless immediately informed.
Under Joseph Muscat
Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the 13th prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020 and leader of the Labour Party from 2008 to 2020.
Muscat was first elected Prime Minister in March 2013 with 54.83 ...
's government, the new energy policy of Malta envisaged the demolition of the 1992 Delimara Phase 1 Heavy Fuel Oil power plant.
Demolishing the 1992 power plant would be impossible to achieve without a new power plant due to N-1 requirements.[REGULATION (EU) No 994/2010 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 20 October 2010 concerning measures to safeguard security of gas supply and repealing Council Directive 2004/67/EC](_blank)
/ref>
The development of a gas-fired power plant
A gas-fired power plant, sometimes referred to as gas-fired power station, natural gas power plant, or methane gas power plant, is a thermal power station that burns natural gas to generate electricity. Gas-fired power plants generate almost a ...
was tasked on a private-public partnership model. The Delimara Power and Gas project was developed by Electrogas Malta Limited, a consortium that includes SOCAR
The State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (), largely known by its abbreviation SOCAR, is a fully state-owned national oil and gas company headquartered in Baku, Azerbaijan. The company produces oil and natural gas from onshore and o ...
, Siemens
Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...
and Gem Holdings. The consortium has been restructured following Gasol departure.
The Nationalist Party. the independent media and various pressure groups criticised the project, including the procurement process and accused the government of blatant corruption. In 2017 investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia was assassinated in a car bomb after exposing corruption in the Electrogas deal.
In 2014 the Phase 3 power plant was sold by Enemalta
Enemalta plc is the only Maltese energy company. It provides energy services in the Maltese Islands and is entrusted with the distribution of electricity, and the development of the national electricity distribution network. It employs approximate ...
to Shanghai Electric who set up D3 elimara 3Generation Limited to run the plant. €100 million was injected directly into Enemalta and €150 million for the Delimara 3 plant (BWSC plant). €70 million was to be invested for the conversion of the plant to gas.
References
External links
{{Commons category inline, Delimara Power Station
1990s architecture
Power stations in Malta
Marsaxlokk