Cat Generator Sets Run China’s Largest CMM Power Plant

In 2008, Jincheng Anthracite Mining Group Co., Ltd. (JAMG), a Chinese coal mining company based in Jincheng, Shanxi, China became the largest coal mine in China to use coal mine methane (CMM) to produce power generation for their mine site. Caterpillar customer, JAMG formally commissioned their first power generation plant in 2008 using 60 Cat® G3520C generator sets, Cat Paralleling Switchgear and Controls after completing a five-year development project. By capturing the previously vented methane gas and converting it into electricity, the Cat generator sets significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions while also improving the capacity of the local power grid. JAMG continues to expand their mine sites and power generation with unique challenges. In new sites currently being developed at the mine, methane is diluted to 12 to 15 percent concentration. When methane concentration is high it’s easy to burn as fuel in an engine but when it gets down to the 12 to 16 percent, it becomes classified as lean coal mine methane gas (LCMM) which requires engine adjustments and additional fuels. They purchased four Cat G3516C low-concentration gas (LCMM) generator sets with power outputs of 1555 kW each. After Installation and commissioning in December of 2018, the G3516C generator sets have operated approximately 2,380 hours as of early March 2019. With 2,380 hours of operation the accumulative power generation was at 13,076,843 kWH, with an effective use ratio of 91-93 percent with the expected annual effective operating hours totalling 7950-8150 hours. Through the comparative operation of different gensets in Phase I and Phase II, JAMG made an objective evaluation. Cat sets run stably, with 100% power output and power generation efficiency of nearly 40%. NOx emissions meet environmental requirements. The genset is highly automated, providing low operation and maintenance workload and low cost of artificial management. The economic benefits are very significant.