ABB has secured key contracts valued at over $5m to supply motors and drives to the Gold Coast desalination plant. The plant, which is owned by the Queensland State Government and Gold Coast City Council is the largest desalination plant on the eastern seaboard and is located at Tugun on the Gold Coast.
The plant is being built by the GCD Alliance (a consortium of companies) and will provide 125 megalitres of potable water each day to South East Queensland. ABB’s scope of supply include four 4800 kW water-cooled 3300V motors, four 1060 kW water-cooled 3300V motors, four 800 kW 11000V motors, and four 550 kW 690V motors 8MV drives
The motors and drives will be used on both the first, and second-pass reverse osmosis pumps, as well as on the ERD booster pumps. Delivery of the first motor is scheduled for September 2007.
According to Cliff Marshall, ABBs Queensland-based motors and drives sales manager, “the major benefit of desalination is that it can continue to deliver high quality drinking water for consumption even if there is no rain. However, there are also some key challenges associated with desalination, which include the need to minimise energy consumption and ongoing operating costs as well as environmental impacts.”
”It is these challenges that the ABB motors and drives planned for installation at the plant have helped address”, explains Marshall.
”The motors have an energy efficiency of 97d% and will save hundred of thousands of dollars in running costs, not to mention saving many tonnes of carbon dioxide gas from being released into the environment”.
Once operational, the Gold Coast desalination plant will have a significant impact on the availability of water to the region. The average daily supply of 125 million litres of desalinated water represents more than 15% of the entire south-east’s current needs and is sufficient to meet the water needs of at least 400,000 people.
.png){kind=small}
.jpg)
