Energoprojekt Gliwice, S.A.
Sanlucar la Mayor, Spain
The goal of this project was to design a second solar power plant on Abengoa property near Seville, Spain, based on the existing power plant design but doubling the power output. The 80 million euro PS20 solar unit will have a 20-megawatt capacity, generating 48.6 gigawatts per hour per year of clean energy, which is enough to supply about 12,000 households.
Energoprojekt Gliwice pioneered the use of this technology in large-scale facilities. At this site, steam parameters and periodic plant schedules caused by day-night changes influenced the chosen materials and design solutions. Atypical equipment requirements led to frequent changes in piping and structure. Basic and detail engineering design were performed using MicroStation and OpenPlant. A steel structure 3D model was produced using other software and imported into the DGN environment. A number of MicroStation VBA macros developed by Energoprojekt Gliwice facilitated a multidiscipline workspace where up-to-date files were stored on the network server.
Making ideas visible using Bentley 3D solutions helped to engage every member of the project team in brainstorming innovative design solutions. The result is Europe’s largest central receiver solar power plant, which uses the renewable energy from the sun to prevent the emission of approximately 12,000 tons of CO2 per year into the atmosphere. The plant was inaugurated on Sept. 25, 2009, in the presence of King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía.
This project was the winner of the Power Generation category of the 2009 Year in Infrastructure Awards, now known as the Going Digital Awards in Infrastructure.
