Excitation system specialist Excitation & Engineering Services (EES) has secured a contract to replace static excitation systems, including power system stabilisation (PSS) and grid compliance upgrades, at a combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) power station in Hull.
This decision follows reliability issues with the legacy excitation assets and withdrawal of OEM support. The project is scheduled to run until 2028/29 and will upgrade excitation infrastructure on two 400 MW gas turbine units.
EES will design, manufacture, install and commission new static excitation systems rated at 2800 A with 5756 A forcing. The project includes detailed grid compliance modelling to meet stringent NESO PSS requirements. The upgrade must integrate with existing cabling and busbar arrangements, while complex installation logistics require large cubicles to be split for transport and assembly.
The project was triggered by the site’s legacy excitation system becoming obsolete. Increasing failure rates, limited spare parts and restricted technical support created a significant risk of unplanned downtime and made long-term maintenance more challenging.
This prompted the site’s electrical engineering team to push for an upgrade as part of a wider investment strategy to improve plant resilience and cost effectiveness.
“The customer placed significant value on having direct access to UK-based excitation engineering expertise, particularly in those moments when rapid response is critical,” said Ryan Kavanagh, director at EES.
“As many legacy excitation systems become obsolete, there is an increasing industry challenge around maintaining the specialist engineering knowledge needed to support and upgrade them effectively. EES sees it as our duty, in the context of the UK’s engineering skills gap, to ensure that these capabilities are available domestically to British engineering firms,” continued Kavanagh.
EES is delivering the solution by designing around existing infrastructure, carefully managing installation constraints and using advanced modelling and simulation to achieve compliance.
Once complete, the upgrade will reduce the risk of unplanned outages, improve overall reliability and ensure long-term supportability of critical systems. It also supports wider grid stability by maintaining dependable generation capacity while extending the operational life of existing assets.
Find out more about how EES supports legacy upgrades here.
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