In December 2008, Tata Power’s new 1.54 km coal handling system unloaded and conveyed the first coal from barges to the power plant stockyard in Mumbai, India. This event marked the coming into operation of India’s most sophisticated, efficient and environment friendly system which includes a continuous ship unloader (CSU) and pipe conveyors supplied by FLSmidth. The project demonstrates Tata’s commitment to high level technology and social responsibility.
Tata Power has a total installed generating capacity of over 2,300 MW in the form of thermal, solar, hydro and wind energy plants. In Mumbai, Tata Power operates a 1,330 MW thermal power station at Trombay. Tata Power was planning to install two more units of 250 MW each to cater for Mumbai City’s increasing demand. Besides, it wanted to ensure that all the units are compatible for the coal based system. Due to governmental regulations it was necessary to install an environment friendly system for unloading coal at the power plant’s jetty and conveying it to and from the stockyard. Tata Power had been working on these requirements for more than a decade, before deciding to work with FLSmidth to install a cutting edge and environment friendly system that meets the stringent regulations and is still competitive.
About Tata
Tata is a rapidly growing business group based in India and with significant international operations. Revenue in 2007-08 is estimated at USD 62.5 billion, 61 per cent of which comes from business outside India. The Tata name has been respected in India for 140 years for its adherence to strong values and business ethics.
Tata Power is one of the 27 publicly listed companies of the Tata Group and is India’s largest private sector power utility, with a presence in generation, transmission, distribution and trading. The company was established in 1906 to supply power to Mumbai city.
FLSmidth - a preferred partner to Tata Power
In 2004, FLSmidth learned about Tata Power’s requirements for building their own jetty to unload imported coal from Indonesia for their existing power plant and for the new power plant being planned. The challenging part was to transport coal within the congested plant layout over a distance of 1,540 m,
crossing existing power plant units, circumventing an existing flyover, passing below the high-voltage power lines, and crossing the 74 metre wide Mumbai Port Trust channel, which houses chemical, gas and oil pipe lines.
In January 2006, FLSmidth was awarded an order on a semi turnkey basis for a complete system comprising a continuous ship unloader and two pipe conveyors including the conveyor at the wharf, structural engineering, electrical supplies & instrumentation.
FLSmidth continuous ship unloader – a design leap
The CSU was preferred instead of a grab, because it is an environment friendly machine for unloading coal at the dedicated jetty. The machine marked a design leap since the unloaders previously supplied by FLSmidth were for capacities 800 tph and below. The machine was designed with a perspective to aggressively enter the port business, at the same time bringing in standardisation; hence it has a vertical screw of 820 mm diameter, which is capable of handling up to 2000 tph of coal. The horizontal arm is 21 m long and the vertical arm is 16 m high. The total machine weighs 283 tonnes. The entire machine was developed, designed and sourced by FLSmidth, who also developed and tested the complete electrics including the PLC. The machine was installed by the FLSmidth team working closely with Tata Power.
FLSmidth pipe conveyors - an engineering marvel
This installation is a classic example of a pipe conveyor application. There are two pipe conveyors of diameter 450 mm: PCN-N2 (444 metres long) and PCN-N3 (1,100 metres long). The pipe conveyors are designed for a speed of 4.5 m/sec and have a rated capacity of 1,550 tph. PCN-N2 receives the coal from the wharf conveyor and feeds PCN-N3 at an elevation of 40 metres in the junction tower. PCN-N3 has curve radii of 135 metres, the tightest in the world. Pipe conveyor PCN-N3 has 14 curves, one of which measures 94 degrees. The double pipe conveyor system is an alternative solution that replaces 14 conventional conveyors which would otherwise have been required for this application.
Before manufacturing the pipe conveyor belting, a finite element analysis was done followed by testing in the test rig at CKIT works in South Africa under simulated operating parameters and in the presence of the client, the FLSmidth team, Dr Gabriel Lodewijks from Delft University and belt manufacturer M/S Taeryuk, South Korea. PCN-N2 is also designed for return conveying of coal from the yard to the new power plant units. Gantries with provision for accommodating a standby pipe conveyor for bringing coal to the new plant are already in place.
Challenges in the brownfield project
The project was full of challenges right from finalising a feasible route to carrying out the work due to space constraints, existing roads and facilities, overhead high-voltage power lines, underground cables and pipelines at the 50-year-old power plant. Several innovative solutions were devised while executing the project, which was completed to the satisfaction of Tata Power and FLSmidth.
Maximising FLSmidth competency and experience
As of today, FLSmidth has successfully installed more than 280 pipe conveyor systems worldwide, which are operating in various industrial applications, handling the easiest to the most challenging materials at capacities ranging from 60 tph to 2000 tph over lengths ranging from 60 to 8,200 metres. FLSmidth worked closely with CKIT (South Africa) to execute the state-of-the-art system from concept to commissioning. This is the first time a system of this configuration has been installed for this application. The company’s experience from the 280 installations has helped in successfully designing and executing a dream project for TATA Power with their continued support.
One Source-One Partner - a preferred approach
The system has been operational since December 2008 and the performance test was completed successfully in April 2009. In response to FLSmidth’s professional approach Tata Power has awarded another order on a single party basis to replace a set of four conventional conveyors with two pipe conveyors. Besides, an operation and maintenance (O&M) contract for the ship unloader along with a contract for supervision of pipe conveyor maintenance has been awarded to FLSmidth.
