Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has announced that it has begun testing new turbines at its M-Station expansion project. The tests include initial operations of the turbines and power generators and connecting the units to DEWA’s grid.

According to a statement from DEWA, the tests are vital to ensuring the quality and reliability of the units when they are connected to the grid. The tests are expected to continue until the $400m expansion project is complete, which is scheduled for Q4 2018.

The project team is presently working on preparations and operational readiness to study the plant’s readiness. After the completion of the initial tests, DEWA says it will start testing pilot operations of the plant. A plan is said to have been devised to conduct these tests in line with best practices and based on accumulated experience in this field, with the goal of achieving maximum reliability, efficiency and safety.

“These tests aim to achieve the project’s objectives by ensuring the conformity of its technical specifications. When completed, the project will increase the station’s total capacity to 2,885 MW,” said Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD and CEO of DEWA.

In its statement, DEWA said that its plans aim to reduce commissioning costs in three areas: rationalising fuel consumption, regulating interruptions, and reducing heat rate.

Al Tayer added that the Jebel Ali M-Station expansion project supports DEWA’s efforts to enhance the infrastructure and improve its services, as per the highest international standards, and support its vision to become a sustainable innovative world-class utility.

The expansion project includes the provision of new power generating units adding a further 700MW to the installed generating capacity of M-Station, besides the addition of two dual-fuel gas turbine generators, two heat recovery steam boilers, and one steam turbine with 90% fuel efficiency.