8.3-run-until-2035-3-ccff72efe3f29296.pdf

The Hendrina Power Station Energy Services Consolidated Life-ex Report provides a detailed technical assessment and set of recommendations to extend the operational life of the power station's boiler, turbine, and auxiliary plants until 2035. The report identifies significant degradation across multiple systems—including severe erosion in superheaters and economizers, fatigue risks in steam drums, and structural decay in flue gas systems—and prescribes a comprehensive program of component replacement, structural redesign, and the implementation of modern asset management and control systems.

• The primary and secondary superheaters require extensive element replacement due to severe fly ash and sootblower erosion. For the primary superheater, it is recommended to increase tube thickness to 6 mm to achieve a 12-year lifetime, with replacement scheduled between 2024 and 2026.
• The steam drum shows a risk of cracking due to operating ramp rates exceeding design limits at riser openings. Specifically, the drumhead of Unit 1 is significantly thinner (60.3mm) than those of Units 2-5 (88.9mm), which will result in higher pressure stress and reduced fatigue life for the drumhead and safety valve nozzle connection.
• The main steam piping system is recommended for complete replacement to support operation until 2035, as the system's typical design life is 200,000 hours (22 years). Proposed modifications include moving to a single super-heater outlet manifold configuration to eliminate overstressed areas and removing the Turbine Lead Valve (TLV) and Warm Up Lines (WUL) to reduce dynamic stress.
• The economizer elements suffer from extensive fly ash erosion, with tube life predictions for the outlet (top) bank as low as 4.3 years after installation if proper screens are not used. The report recommends replacing all economizer elements and applying metal spray to the top 4 elements of each bank to reach a 12-year lifetime.
• The flue gas system requires the design, manufacture, and installation of new flues, dampers, and expansion joints because internal bracing has eroded to the point of disconnection, posing a significant risk to plant safety.
• The deaerator internal components are in poor condition with signs of severe erosion and burn-through on plate. The report states the system is only acceptable for further operation if internal components are replaced as soon as possible.
• The pulverised fuel (PF) piping system is described as being in a poor state of repair, with broken and non-functional supports. This condition poses environmental, health, and safety risks, necessitating a detailed visual inspection and the refurbishment and recalibration of all supports.
• To comply with the Air Quality act by 2020, the existing coal burners must be replaced with low NOx axial swirl burners due to high wear on core air swirlers' vanes.
• The plant's control and automation systems require significant upgrades to reach 2035. This includes replacing the DCS monitoring and control system with the SPPA-T3000 by 2015, upgrading field automation to SIMATIC S7, and upgrading the Bentley Nevada vibration monitoring system by 2023.
• The report recommends the installation of a flue gas desulfurization (FGD) plant to manage SOx emissions, noting that while some historical samples met future limits, others (with higher sulphur content) would exceed them.

APA

Centre for Environmental Rights (n.d.). 8.3-run-until-2035-3-ccff72efe3f29296.pdf. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/8.3-Run-Until-2035-3.pdf?x21779

Chicago

Centre for Environmental Rights. 8.3-run-until-2035-3-ccff72efe3f29296.pdf. n.d. https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/8.3-Run-Until-2035-3.pdf?x21779.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Centre for Environmental Rights |title=8.3-run-until-2035-3-ccff72efe3f29296.pdf |url=https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/8.3-Run-Until-2035-3.pdf?x21779 |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{centreforenvironmentalrightsnd83rununtil20353ccff72efe3f29296pdf, author = {{Centre for Environmental Rights}}, title = {{8.3-run-until-2035-3-ccff72efe3f29296.pdf}}, institution = {Centre for Environmental Rights}, url = {https://cer.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/8.3-Run-Until-2035-3.pdf?x21779}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }