Chiba Thermal Power Station


Chiba Thermal Power Station, is an operational thermal power station located in the city of Chiba, Japan. It is owned and operated by JERA, with a maximum output of 4380 MW. Originally built in the late 1950s as a coal-burning plant, it was later converted to a plant burning liquefied natural gas in 2000.

History

Chiba Thermal Power Station began operations in the late 1950s as a 600MW capacity coal fired power plant. It had four units however due to aging facilities and increasing demand for electricity, in 2000 the plant was renovated to a combined cycle power plant and fuelled with Liquefied Natural Gas. Groups 1 and 2 were constructed in 2000 with a maximum output of 2880 MW. In 2011, as part of an emergency plan to supply power after the Great East Japan Earthquake, three gas turbine systems were constructed within 4 months. From 2012 to 2014, a more advanced combined cycle system was added as group 3. This added an additional 1500MW capacity.

Power generation

When Chiba Thermal Power Station was renovated to a combined cycle power plant, Groups 1 & 2 were constructed. Each has a total power output of 1440 MW. Group 3 was constructed outdoors, as opposed to indoors like Groups 1 and 2, due to the need for it to be built quickly after the Great East Japan Earthquake. Group 3 added a power output of 1500MW. The total power output of the station is 4380MW and the site covers approximately 760,000 square metres of land. LNG is supplied by pipeline from terminals located at Sodegaura Power Station and Futtsu Power Station and the plant outputs its cooling water into the nearby sea.
Operation StartedPower Generation TypeDesign Thermal EfficiencyOutputTotal Output
Group 1April 2000ACC54.2%360MW x 41440MW
Group 2June 2000ACC54.2%360MW x 41440MW
Group 3July 2014MACCUnits 3-1 and 3-2: 57.3%
Unit 3-3: 57.7%		500MW x 31500MW

Historic power generation

Group 1 of the original coal-fired power station began operations in April 1957, and in following years more groups were added, ending with Group 4 in November 1959. Originally burning coal, the plant later switched to crude oil. Due to aging facilities and the increasing demand for electricity, in 2000 the plant was renovated and a new combined cycle power generation system was installed.
Operation StartedOperation EndedFuelDesign Thermal EfficiencyTotal Output
Group 1 April 1957March 1999Coal, later Crude Oil37.2%125MW
Group 2 November 1957March 1999Coal, later Crude Oil37.2%125MW
Group 3 January 1959March 1999Coal, later Crude Oil38.8%175MW
Group 4 November 1959March 1999Coal, later Crude Oil38.8%175MW