Even if a main gas pipeline runs close to an enterprise or boiler house, it does not mean the facility can be quickly connected to the gas supply. Insufficient network pressure, limited throughput capacity, and the need to build new pipeline sections become obstacles.
This was stated by the founder of LLC UKRAVTONOMGAZ, Andriy Dorofeyev.
According to him, the development of gas piston generation (gas generation), which is currently relied upon during blackouts, faces serious infrastructure limitations that can significantly increase the cost and timeframe of projects. Even if environmental standards and design parameters allow for an increase in natural gas consumption, the physical connection of a new gas piston unit (GPU) or gas boiler house may prove impossible without substantial network modernization. The key problem in such cases is usually the technical characteristics of existing gas pipelines: pressure, diameter, and throughput capacity.
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Barriers to Gas Cogeneration Startups
As Andrey Dorofeyev explains, the operation of gas piston units and boiler houses often requires medium pressure - about 0.3-0.5 bar. At the same time, inter-quarter networks, to which backup modular boiler houses try to connect, operate at low pressure (up to 0.05 bar).
"The presence of a gas pipeline near the connection points of boiler houses and cogeneration units does not guarantee connection to the pipe. Very often, it is necessary to lay a gas pipeline to the boiler house for several kilometers, and sometimes - tens of kilometers," the expert notes.
At the same time, the construction of new gas pipelines in urban areas entails significant capital expenditures on design, earthworks, route approvals, and utility crossings. As a result, the gas supply stage becomes the longest and most expensive in the entire project of launching cogeneration or gas boiler houses.
Experts advise enterprises and communities to start gas or thermal generation projects by obtaining technical conditions, assessing network throughput capacity, peak loads, and the cost of possible construction of a new gas pipeline. In cases where connection to the centralized network is too expensive and time-consuming, autonomous gas supply systems based on liquefied gas with the installation of LPG gasholders can become an alternative.
LPG Gas as an Alternative to Main Natural Gas
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However, connecting a boiler house or gas piston power plant does not guarantee the presence of gas in the pipe during enemy missile strikes, as possible restrictions on natural gas supply in emergency situations are a separate risk.
Strict rules for a gas crisis are in effect in Ukraine (Ministry of Energy Orders No. 330 and No. 437), which divide all consumers into five queues for gas disconnection. In the event of an emergency, industrial and municipal facilities will have to independently and completely stop gas consumption as soon as they receive a corresponding demand from the LLC “GAS DISTRIBUTION NETWORKS OF UKRAINE” operator (Gazmerezhi).
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Background Info:
The UKRAVTONOMGAZ company specializes in the design and construction of autonomous gas supply systems based on LPG/SNG for industrial and agricultural enterprises, boiler houses, and cogeneration units, and conducts technical analyses of gas supply facilities. UKRAVTONOMGAZ has been shaping the liquefied gas market in Ukraine for over 15 years.
