Managing industrial power - How can a co-generation plant produce power cheaper than a large modern utility?

摘要

Process industries are hooked on electrical energy. Typically, in mills where large amounts of steam are required for the process, steam turbines are for co-generation of electricity. However, since the amount of co-generated power in most mills is insufficient to satisfy the mills total electric load, the mill purchases the balance of its requirements from the local electric utility as well as relying on them for backup service in case of generating equipment outages. Electricity rates charged to industrial and commercial customers vary widely across the country. A recent survey comparing the monthly cost of 10,000 kWh (a small commercial user's consumption) indicated a wide variation between the highest (USD1,270) and lowest (USD186) cost. This large variation is from the cost of the fuel used to generate the power by the providing utility, Access to extensive hydroelectric generation facilities tend to stabilize and reduce that area's electric costs, while urban area's rates have risen rapidly with the cost of fuel oil. Thus, a customer's incentive for requiring a power management solution depends heavily on his specific location and specific electric power economics. Real time pricing contracts swing drastically based on supply and demand.