Siemens announced that it has signed a cooperation agreement in Sweden to test renewable fuels at the Rya plant located in the energy port of Gothenburg. The first phase of the agreement with Göteborg Energi is to validate 3D-printed burners at its Rya plant.

The aim is that all district heating in Gothenburg, Sweden, will be produced by renewable or recovered energy sources by 2030. Goteborg Energi and Siemens will test advanced gas turbine technology that enables the operation of renewable fuels in the Rya combined heat and power (CHP) plant, which is today powered by natural gas.

As a first step an SGT-800 test turbine has been installed at the Rya plant forthe validation of 3D printed burners which would then allow for testing of different fossil-free fuels in the plant. The production of gas turbine burners using additive manufacturing (AM) makes a decisive contribution to accelerating the research and development process for new technologies that contribute to a greener energy supply, Siemens said.

Recently, the AM team within Siemens Gas & Power initiated the development of an accelerated validation process for new technologies and components and now this process is working in the Rya CHP plant. The special test engine is installed at the plant to support new developments.

“The Rya CHP plant plays an important role in Gothenburg’s electricity supply,” said Alf Engqvist, CEO of Göteborg Energi. “Working together with Siemens we want to explore the possibilities for the conversion of both electric power and heat production as pieces of the puzzle in our work for fossil-free energy independence.”

The Rya combined cycle power plant was delivered turnkey by Siemens 2006 and includes three SGT-800 gas turbines.