Steam separator for a geothermal power plant

Verkís designs steam separator for a geothermal power plant in New-Zealand.

Top Energy, a company from New Zealand, has recently been working on the expansion of the Ngawha geothermal power plant in New Zealand. Verkís was responsible for the design of the steam separator, which delivers 99.995% steam quality.

With the expansion, the power plant’s capacity increased by 32 MW. The power plant is equipped with a binary turbine from Ormat.

Ormat usually designs and builds separators for its machines, but in this project the owner of the power plant wanted to use Verkís’ knowledge and experience and try a horizontal steam separator, as there were various arrangements in the geothermal field that support that decision.

According to the owner, the new separator has met all expectations for performance and steam quality, and the experience gained already shows the advantages of horizontal steam separators. The arrangement of pipes on the main well pad is well implemented by Verkís’ partner in New Zealand and suits the horizontal steam separation concept perfectly .

Two other steam separators from Verkís in New Zealand are being built and installed and it will be exciting to see how they turn out in the coming months.

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