Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center

Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center is the solar parabolic-trough component of an integrated solar combined cycle (ISCC) 1150 MW plant, in western Martin County, Florida, United States, just north of Indiantown. The project was built by Florida Power & Light Company (FPL). Lauren Engineers & Constructors (Abilene, TX) was the EPC contractor for the project.^[1] Its construction began in 2008^[2] and was completed by the end of 2010.^[3]

Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center
Country	United States
Location	Martin County, Florida
Coordinates	27.053°N 80.550°W / 27.053; -80.550
Status	Operational
Construction began	December 2008
Commission date	December 2010
Construction cost	$141 million
Owner(s)	FPL
Solar farm
Type	CSP
CSP technology	Parabolic trough
Collectors	6,864 (192,192 mirrors)
Total collector area	464,908 square metres (5,004,230 sq ft)
Site area	500 acres (202 ha)
Power generation
Nameplate capacity	75 MW
Capacity factor	24%
Annual net output	124 GW·h (planned)
External links
Website	www.fpl.com/environment/solar/martin.shtml

The ISCC plant is part of the Martin Plant site which consists of 5 units. Unit 1 & Unit 2 are 800 MW steam electric generating units that use natural gas and low-sulfur residual oil. Unit 3 & Unit 4 are 500 MW natural gas-fired combined cycle units.

Unit 8 is a natural gas fired 4-on-1 combined cycle unit with a nominal capacity of 1150 MW. Light oil is used as backup. Unit 8, placed into commercial operation in 2005, is integrated with the solar plant. Unit 8 features four 170 MW gas turbines, one 470 MW steam turbine, and a single condenser and cooling tower^[4][5] The single solar field circuit heats 4 steam generators, after each gas turbine. The Martin solar thermal facility is designed to provide steam for FPL's existing Martin Unit 8 combined cycle unit, thus reducing FPL's use of natural gas. No additional capacity (MW) will result from the operation of the solar thermal facility.

The Solar Energy Center has an array of approximately 190,000-mirror parabolic troughs on about 500 acres (202 ha) of the Martin County plant.^[6] The solar collectors feed heat to the existing steam plant, displacing gas generated electricity at an estimated rate of 155,000 MWh per year.^[7] The 2012 solar-derived production was about 89,000 MWh of power, according to records filed with the state’s Public Service Commission, which was 42% less than projected when the plant got approval.^[8]

The solar component can generate electrical energy only if the four gas turbines are in operation, otherwise the 470 MW steam turbine will not move. When gas turbines are stopped, the solar heat is used to keep the steam turbine in temperature, in order to facilitate a more rapid start-up.

FPL expects the $476 million^[9] solar plant to reduce the combined-cycle power plant's natural gas consumption by 1.3 billion cubic feet (37 million m³) per year.^[9] Over the 30-year life of the project, this is expected to save $178 million in fuel cost^[10] and reduce carbon emissions by 2.75 million tons.^[9]

Excess pressure and a release of operating fluid led to the plant being shut down for four months in 2011 for cleanup and testing.^[11]

As of 2024, no additional concentrated solar plants are planned for Florida, although in 2007 FPL had planned on building a 300 MW Fresnel solar thermal plant.^[12]

Production

Generation (MW·h) of Martin ^[13]

Year	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Total
2011	2,868	4,641	9,249	2,891	3,357	114	-120	-120	3,640	-118	2,668	0	29,067
2012	5,017	2,921	9,915	12,018	9,555	9,100	11,001	7,541	6,169	7,146	3,956	3,999	88,338
2013	4,388	7,288	8,883	7,254	12,784	14,352	12,872	10,675	8,227	9,372	2,522	3,264	101,881
2014	4,632	8,055	10,500	11,950	13,344	9,944	11,009	12,322	11,236	16,884	5,971	8,629	124,476
2015	4,730	437	8,791	9,877	15,155	15,571	17,349	14,827	7,468	6,139	3,809	1,950	106,103
2016	2,222	5,510	5,728	11,479	13,962	9,534	5,404	6,522	5,344	2,638	4,344	6,635	79,322
Total													529,187

References

1. "75-MW CSP Plant to be Built in Florida". RenewableEnergyWorld.com. March 27, 2009. Retrieved 2009-08-01.
2. "FPL Breaks Ground on First Hybrid Solar Plant". RenewableEnergyWorld.com. December 5, 2008. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
3. Vo, Danny (January 10, 2011). "Florida utilities lay plans for solar projects in 2011". CoolerPlanet.com. Archived from the original on January 14, 2011. Retrieved 2011-01-28.
4. "Case Study: Martin County Expansion Project (2004)". GEA. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
5. "Draft Permit - Florida Department of Environmental Protection" (PDF). FDEP. Retrieved 2013-05-19.
6. Mayfield, Jim (2008-12-03). "World's first hybrid solar power facility breaks ground in Martin County". TCPalm.com. Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
7. "Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center FAQs". FPL. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2009-05-26.
8. Samples, Eve (2013-03-10). "FPL's Martin solar energy center still struggling to meet its targets". TCPalm.com. Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group. Retrieved 2013-05-19.
9. Mouawad, Jad (March 4, 2010). "The Newest Hybrid Model". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-01-28.
10. Patel, Julie (January 28, 2011). "FPL's estimates on solar costs customers pay questioned". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on 2011-01-31. Retrieved 2011-01-28.
11. Major spill at FPL solar plant gets glossed over
12. Big Solar Thermal Power Plants Planned for Florida, California
13. "Martin, Monthly". Electricity Data Browser. Energy Information Administration. Retrieved March 8, 2017.

External links

• "The Cost of Solar Electricity at the Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center". Gerson Lehrman Group. March 14, 2010. Retrieved 2011-01-28.