Siemens Gas Turbines Technologies, SGTT (Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies, STGT LLC) is a Russian-German machine-building enterprise founded as a joint venture between the "" concern in 2011. 65% of the shares belong to Siemens, 35% to Power Machines. The company's field of activity is the production and maintenance of gas turbines with a capacity above 60 MW for the Russian and CIS markets. The company is engaged in the development, assembly, sale and service of gas turbines, as well as localization of production. The company was created on the basis of Interturbo LLC, also a joint venture of Siemens AG and Power Machines OJSC, which for twenty years assembled Siemens gas turbines under license. The company's main production site is a plant near the village of Gorelovo, Leningrad Region (opened in 2015). Official website.
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Siemens spat on EU sanctions
The German concern does not intend to leave due to the scandal with the supply of turbines to Crimea from Russia and plans to increase the localization of gas turbine production in the Russian Federation to 90%.
The United States added Power Machines to the sanctions list
In all other respects, the US sanctions list for the supply of Siemens gas turbines to Crimea corresponds to a similar list of the European Union adopted back in August 2017: it includes outright switchers, second-rate officials and small service companies.
The court refused to return Siemens gas turbines from Crimea
Deputy Minister of Energy Andrei Tcherezov noted that the first two Siemens turbines have already been installed at the Sevastopol and Simferopol thermal power plants and alignment measures are being carried out on them.
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Siemens is ready to return the funds received for the turbines if the equipment is not used in Crimea. It is fundamentally important for the concern not to find itself in violation of EU sanctions, even if unintentionally.
Sergei Chemezov targeted Power Machines, and the FSB targeted the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry
Last week in the Russian Federation, one of the hottest topics was the problem of Siemens turbines, which they quietly tried to deliver to Crimea. The second most important topic is FSB searches in the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry. It is believed that the FSB is trying to bring this structure under its control.
The media reported the release of the general director of Power Machines after interrogation
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General Director of Power Machines detained due to disclosure of state secrets
Roman Filippov, general manager"Power Machines", detained in St. Petersburg by officers of the Federal Security Service. The date and circumstances of the arrest have not yet been specified.
A sham deal: Forbes found out the details of the Siemens lawsuit regarding “Crimean turbines”
The German concern believes that Technopromexport misled suppliers and demands that the deal for the supply of all four gas turbine units be declared invalid and returned.
Crimea returned to Russia quite recently, events unfolded and are unfolding before our eyes, the dust on the archives has not yet had time to form, and here there is some kind of obsession, everyone is only talking about what is happening right now, in July 2017. There is nothing difficult in restoring the chronology of events, in open sources there is plenty of information. Let's first ask “childish questions” so that the logic of the reasoning is obvious.
Why are gas turbines needed for production in Crimea? Siemens? Because gas turbines of such power in Russia are produced only under the license of this company, Russia simply does not have independent developments. Why are they building power plants that can only operate with the help of these turbines? Because such a project is being implemented by the state company OJSC Technopromexport. Why is this particular JSC implementing the project? Because such a decision was made on July 13, 2015 by decree of the Government of the Russian Federation. Why did the Russian Government choose this particular company as the general contractor, and did it without tenders or competitions? Because JSC Technopromexport is a subsidiary Rostec, which was included in the US and EU sanctions list, and therefore had nothing to fear, unlike all other Russian energy companies. Why was the decision made to build gas turbine power plants and not some others? Why was the decision of the Government of the Russian Federation made only in the middle of summer 2015, and not earlier? Why was this particular power chosen?
These last three questions deserve close attention, without answers to them understand real reasons turbine scandal Siemens impossible. In order not to immerse readers in technical details right away, let’s warm up with the actions of the Government of the Russian Federation.
Government plan for the development of CrimeaSo, the return of Crimea took place in the spring of 2014; before that, the prodigal peninsula “lived without a mother” for 23 years. We do not have the slightest desire to analyze socio-political events; we consider only the economic aspects of what happened. An analysis of the state of the peninsula’s economy showed horrifying results; 23 years of Crimea being part of Ukraine affected it almost in the same way as the results of the Great Patriotic War.
The abomination of desolation reigned in the infrastructure, in the condition of roads, engineering structures, in housing construction, in the energy sector and the list goes on. Dilapidation, lack of attempts at any kind of modernization, and so on, and so on, and so on. What should the government do in such a situation? Of course, draw up a work plan, figuring out what needs to be done first and second. Favorite question Geoenergetics is obvious: what measures were envisaged to put the Crimean energy system in order?
Meeting of the Government of the Russian Federation, Photo: tvc.ru
The work plan was not secret; its text can still be found on the website of the Government of the Russian Federation. Anyone can independently find in search engines “Resolution of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 790 of August 11, 2014 “On approval of the federal target program “Socio-economic development of the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol until 2020.”
Pay attention to the date - almost six months have passed since the reunification of Crimea with Russia; the Government of the Russian Federation had time to analyze the situation and draw up a program. Those readers who have the time and desire to self-study document containing 150 pages of text, the next part of the article, of course, can be skipped.
We look at those sections of the program that relate to the development of the peninsula’s energy system. In Section III on page 13:
“...development of the energy complex - eliminating network restrictions, creating our own generation and ensuring reliable and uninterrupted power supply to consumers of the Crimean Peninsula.”
Section V of the program states that the government customer and coordinator of the program is the Ministry of the Russian Federation for Crimean Affairs, and the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation, among others, is simply a customer, without coordinating functions. After mass general provisions and philosophical reasoning, on page 28 there appears “a list of target indicators and indicators of the Federal Targeted Program “Socio-economic development of the Republic and the city of Sevastopol until 2020”, which begins with the section “Development of the energy complex”. We will quote this section in full - after all, it occupies exactly one line:
“Increase in the length of power lines. 2017 – 569.5 km; 2018 – 1099.5 km.”
That's it, the quoting is finished, the entire section is in front of you. At the same time, the volume of funding for the Federal Target Program from the Ministry of Energy, as indicated on page 48, is 10.3 billion rubles in 2015, 22.5 billion rubles in 2016. In 2017, the Ministry of Energy is obliged to contribute 12.7 billion rubles, in 2018-2020 – another 5.2 billion rubles. Once again to secure. The increase in power lines in 2015 and 2016 according to the Federal Target Program is zero. The expenses of the Ministry of Energy for the same 2 years are 32.8 billion rubles. It’s difficult to comment; we invite readers to evaluate the quality of the federal target program themselves.
As we see, during the first year after the return of Crimea, the Government of the Russian Federation was not concerned about the need to build new generating capacities on the peninsula; it was concerned, and even then only in the future of 2017, with the construction of new power lines. Editorial Geoenergetics didn't want to believe it strange fact, but further study of the text of the Federal Target Program did not bring anything comforting. Page 56, “Federal Targeted Program activities aimed at capital investments”, section “Modernization and construction of generation facilities” – only dashes up to 2020 inclusive.
Modernization and construction of generation facilities, Table: m.government.ru
It is difficult to say what the calculation was based on. Obviously, the Government of the Russian Federation was convinced that Ukraine, which organized a water blockade of Crimea in the summer of 2014, would under no circumstances stop supplying electricity, because all that is necessary to put the peninsula’s energy system in order is to install new ones in about three years. power line threads. We are forced to admit that the editors of the magazine understand such remarkable logic of government officials "Geoenergetics.ru" unable to achieve.
Plans for the construction of power plants for CrimeaLess than a year later, however, some tectonic shifts occurred in the government, as a result of which there was an understanding that Russia was simply obliged to build new power plants in Crimea, otherwise it would be impossible to achieve guaranteed energy security for the peninsula. On July 13, 2015, Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 703 was published, the name of which we, with apologies, are forced to print in full. Fans of bureaucratic newspeak will, we are sure, truly enjoy it - in our opinion, this is a masterpiece. Are you ready? Read:
“On approval of the Rules for the provision of subsidies from the federal budget in the form of a property contribution in 2015 Russian Federation to the State Corporation for promoting the development, production and export of high-tech industrial products “Rostec” for the construction and modernization of facilities for the production of electrical and thermal energy in the territories of certain regions of the Russian Federation under the federal target program “Socio-economic development of the Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol until 2020” of the year" within the framework of the non-program activity "Implementation of the functions of other federal government bodies."
Beautiful, isn't it? So, in the summer of 2015, a decision was made, on the basis of which the design and construction of two new power plants was entrusted to Rostec. Since not everyone is able to understand the meaning of the name of the government decree, here is another quote that will help you see what we were talking about:
"2. The subsidy is provided on the basis of an agreement concluded by the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation with the Corporation, which provides for:
... c) project implementation schedule containing target indicators, key events and timing of commissioning of generation facilities, including:
- commissioning of the first stage of the combined cycle plant (first block - 235 MW) of the Sevastopol Thermal Power Plant and the combined cycle gas plant (first block - 235 MW) of the Simferopol Thermal Power Plant - September 1, 2017,
- commissioning of the second stage of the combined cycle plant (second block - 235 MW) of the Sevastopol Thermal Power Plant and the combined cycle gas plant (second block - 235 MW) of the Simferopol Thermal Power Plant - March 3, 2018,
- commissioning of the Sevastopol Thermal Power Plant and the Simferopol Thermal Power Plant (total electrical capacity – at least 900 MW) – March 3, 2018.”
We are talking about the property contribution of the Government of the Russian Federation to the construction of the Simferopol and Sevastopol thermal power plants, each of which will have two units with a capacity of 235 MW, both of which will operate on the basis of combined cycle plants. To understand what will be discussed next, you will have to understand the terminology used. “Fuel and energy station based on combined cycle gas plants” - what is it and why exactly was it conceived for Crimea? Where is the concept of “gas turbine” here, because of which, in fact, the scandal broke out around Siemens? Traditionally, we will try to do without formulas that in this case not required.
Gas turbines for energyLet's start in order, step by step. Let's start with the gas turbine, a special way of producing electricity. What is burning here, as the name suggests, is gas. There is no firebox as such, there is a combustion chamber into which two gas flows enter, both under high pressure, which ensures a high combustion temperature. A gas turbine is a shaft on which there are two disks with blades, with a combustion chamber located in between them. The first disk sucks in pre-filtered atmospheric air, compresses it (raises the pressure) and delivers it to the combustion chamber. Natural gas enters the combustion chamber through another “entrance”, as a result of which a fuel-air mixture (FA) is formed in the chamber, which, in fact, burns. As a result of the combustion of the fuel assembly, the gas expands, the pressure becomes even greater, and this extremely hot gas, which has a very high pressure, is directed to the blades of the second disk, causing it to rotate. As you may have guessed, this is a current generator - that’s it, the result has been achieved, natural gas has provided us with electricity.
However, even the most advanced, most modern gas turbines have an efficiency coefficient that barely overcomes the 30-35% level, so in their “pure” form, gas turbines for generating electricity are used where there is a lot of gas and electricity is extremely necessary. Gas fields and rotational camps near them, settlements located in energy isolated areas where the power lines of our unified energy system do not reach - these are the traditional places for using gas turbines. Did Russia need high-power gas turbines? In the rarest of cases. Did we produce gas turbines ourselves, without the participation of foreign specialists and companies? Yes, we did and still do.
But historically, in our country, the production of steam turbines developed much more actively than the production of gas turbines, the development of which began in the USSR only in the 50s (note that we are talking about gas turbines for the needs of the energy sector, not the aircraft industry) . The Ural Turbine Plant produces turbines with a capacity of up to 15.2 MW with an efficiency of 28%. The Nevsky Plant in St. Petersburg produces turbines with a capacity of up to 16 MW with an efficiency of 31%, the Kuznetsov plant in Samara has mastered the production of turbines with a capacity of up to 26.5 MW with an efficiency of 36%. KMPO in Kazan produces turbines with a capacity of up to 25 MW, Salyut in Omsk with a capacity of up to 20 MW, and ODK in Rybinsk until recently produced turbines with a capacity of up to 8 MW. The Perm Motor Plant also produces turbines for power engineers with a capacity of up to 23 MW.
For Russia, this range was quite sufficient, but it was in the 2000s, when suddenly there was a demand for more powerful turbines. This was connected with the privatization of the Unified Energy System of Russia and Chubais’s reforms. When selling generating capacities, buyers were obliged to build new and modernize old power plants, which was formalized in the form of CSA agreements - capacity supply agreements. But the volume of such demand was small, which is why our manufacturers did not dare to invest in the design and organization of production of high-power turbines. The only exception is UEC, which developed and produced the GTD-110 turbine with a capacity of 110 MW. But the first samples of such equipment are not reliable - the design has yet to be brought to the required quality.
Turbine GTD-110, Photo: vmasshtabe.ru
Of the foreign companies, the only one that dared to organize the production of high-power gas turbines was Siemens. In 2011, a joint venture was created with Power Machines, bearing the self-explanatory name Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies LLC. The tasks of the joint venture include not only organizing the production of Siemens turbines, but also developing new types of them.
Steam-gas plantsDemand for powerful turbines is small, but Siemens nevertheless produces them. What is the reason? The fact is that its turbines are designed in such a way that they easily become part of the very same combined cycle gas plants discussed in Resolution No. 703. The “secret” is small - in a CCGT unit, gas that has already provided electricity is used twice, thereby increasing the efficiency to an extra 60 percent. Gas escapes from the combustion chamber at a temperature of over 500 degrees, and no amount of rotation of the generator blades can significantly reduce this temperature. Why throw such a valuable product into the atmosphere? From the outlet of the gas turbine, combustion products enter the waste heat boiler, where water and the steam generated from it are heated. The temperature of the combustion products makes it possible to obtain superheated steam at a pressure of 100 atmospheres, which enters the steam turbine, producing another portion of electricity.
Gas turbines Siemens, produced in Russia, are capable of “solo” providing 157 MW of electricity, but in combination with a steam cycle - the same 235 MW, which should provide Crimea with its own generation and finally resolve the issue of energy security of the peninsula. The advantages of PSU are quite obvious. The cost per unit of installed capacity is sharply reduced, the efficiency of electricity production is doubled, which cannot but please consumers. There is another reason why CCGT plants were chosen for Crimea - they sharply reduce the amount of water used, which is critically important for the peninsula. Another advantage is that a CCGT can be built for a very short time. Resolution No. 703 referred to two years; during such a period it is technically impossible to build another thermal power plant (fuel power plant).
Let's summarize. Fast, little water, low cost of electricity - these are the reasons why Crimea relied on CCGT. Sanctions under which Rostec had already managed to get in - the reason why he became the general contractor.
It’s completely objective that without Siemens such a project could not get by. If the construction of generating capacities had been planned a year earlier, if the same UEC had received orders and government assistance in bringing the GTD-110 technology to the required standard - yes, Russia would have had a chance to cope on our own. The initial miscalculation was aggravated by the fact that Technopromexport is carrying out capital construction with an increasing lag behind the schedule; in December last year, instead of the planned end of 2017, it called the possible date for commissioning of the thermal power plant mid-2018. We will see how this ends in the very near future, but for now let’s summarize the reasoning.
Crimea needed new generating capacities, they needed them in a short time, they needed generation that did not require a large amount of a scarce resource - water. Only technology immediately met these three requirements Siemens, there was not enough time for other decisions, which was due to errors in drawing up the government plan for the development of Crimea made in 2014. In the summer of 2015, it was obvious that there were no other options, that without Siemens can't cope. It was no less obvious that such a supply of gas turbines inevitably exposes the German manufacturer to punitive measures from the EU, since it is a gross, demonstrative violation of sanctions restrictions. In the summer of 2015 - we repeat again. The time to come up with the most accurate way to bypass sanctions restrictions is two years. Did you resist Siemens to your participation in the Crimean project? In words - of course, yes. But 4 turbines of such power, and even equipped with a CCGT unit, is a very successful order, a very good profit. And two years to...
Anti-Russian sanctionsRostec thought through two options for circumventing the sanctions restrictions, but did it so “cleverly” that only the lazy did not know about it. Technopromexport suddenly became the general contractor for the construction of a thermal power plant in Taman, the project of which involves the use of a 270 MW CCGT unit - a kind of “twin brother” of the Simferopol and Sevastopol thermal power plants on the other side of the Kerch Strait. It’s a bit rude, of course, since verbiage on the topic “they mixed up where they were taking what” could come across the fact that Siemens To comply with politeness, I would be forced to refuse servicing of Crimean thermal power plants.
In February of this year, Sergey Chemezov, General Director Rostec, spoke publicly about option No. 2. Rostec expects to buy turbines for new thermal power plants in Crimea in Iran. Negotiations are in their final stages. Chemezov did not disclose the details of these negotiations, nor with which of the Iranian manufacturers these negotiations were conducted. But for everyone familiar with the situation in the industry, this was an open secret. In Iran Siemens created a joint venture with Iranians Marpa. Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies LLC near St. Petersburg produces gas turbines GTE-160 with a capacity of 157 MW, allowing them to be assembled into combined cycle gas turbine units. In Iran Marpa produces V94.2 turbines with a capacity of 157 MW, allowing them to be integrated into combined cycle gas turbine units. Find two differences, as they say.
Sergey Chemezov, CEO of Rostec, Photo: tvc.ru
The production of turbines in Iran began in 2011, so there are no traces of any Crimean restrictions there. Of course, to respect the rights of distributors Siemens probably imposed a ban on the Iranians supplying these turbines to the CIS, but all that such a violation would lead to Marpa– a commercial court with a co-owner of the enterprise, nothing more. At the same time, to the very Siemens there would be no claims from the EU - the German company would not supply anything to Crimea, everything would be in perfect order. Attention, question: why, for what purpose did Mr. Chemezov tell the media about holding negotiations with the Iranians, about the proposed contract? Our editors have no answer to this question.
At the beginning of July, agency correspondents Reuters the news was trumpeted all over the world that they had seen a cargo similar to the product in the port of Feodosia Siemens– “four cylindrical objects several meters long, covered with blue and gray tarpaulin. Their sizes and shapes correspond to photographs of gas turbine systems, each of which consists of a turbine and a generator.” Direct confirmations from Reuters there was none, but one publication was enough for a real scandal to break out.
Manufactured by Siemens, Photo: ekbatantechnic.ir
The Russian leadership claims that the equipment for the Crimean thermal power plants is purely Russian, that it was purchased on some secondary market for gas turbines, Siemens has already filed lawsuits against its subsidiary Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies and Technopromexport, and in the Arbitration City Court of Moscow. Why go to court is understandable, to avoid fines from the European Commission for violating sanctions restrictions. Why the Russian court is also understandable, but it’s not clear how all this could end. Siemens has already started talking about the fact that he will curtail his entire business in Russia, which will create a certain working group, which will check the degree of modernization of turbines - what if it is so great that it is no longer a GTE-160, but something completely new. It is possible that all this rhetoric is nothing more than words necessary to avoid accusations of violating anti-Russian sanctions; time will tell. One thing is absolutely certain - Rostec definitely lost Siemens as a partner with the help of whom he intended to compete with General Electric on the Russian power equipment market.
The scandal, however, may have far-reaching consequences. Let us remind you that the United States is now considering a new round of anti-Russian sanctions, threatening fines for third-party companies taking part in joint energy projects with Russia. These measures could lead to the risk of disruption of the Nord Stream 2 project; Germany and Austria have already managed to officially be outraged by such US plans. And at this moment Siemens may be recognized as a company that violated the terms of the “Crimean” anti-Russian sanctions, which will be a wonderful reason for American “hawks” to push another package of sanctions through the Senate, Congress and the US President.
US Congress, Photo: gif.cmtt.space
Now we can, perhaps, draw a line under reflections on what actually caused the current loud scandal, which could potentially lead to the risk of failure of all agreements on the construction of Nord Stream 2. In 2014, the Government of the Russian Federation, when developing a comprehensive plan for the development of Crimea, was extremely negligent in solving the problems of the peninsula’s energy system. This is not the first time that the government of Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev has taken such an approach to the issues of energy development in Russia - not so long ago we managed to forget about energy in comprehensive plan development of the Far East.
The 2014 plan was based on the fact that Ukraine was considered a reliable, negotiable partner in everything related to the supply of electricity to the territory of Crimea. Sobering came only a year later; this time was wasted in vain for the opportunity to draw up some other plan for the construction of generating capacities, in which the use of imported power equipment would simply not be required. There was time to design, for example, not two large thermal power plants using gas turbines from Siemens, and several thermal power plants of lower power, but based on turbines from KMPO or Kuznetsov.
The two years available to the government and Rostec in order to remove the company from sanctions restrictions Siemens, which many media outlets are now trying to present as almost the initiator of the scandal. Yes, now Siemens his behavior towards Russia is by no means complementary, but his behavior is not difficult to understand. Companies have something to be afraid of; Americans do not stand on ceremony with violators of sanctions measures; the size of fines is sometimes absolutely fantastic. For example, in 2014, a French bank BNP Paribas was fined $8.9 billion by the Americans for violating sanctions against Iran and Cuba, Deutche Bank for anti-Iranian and anti-Syrian sanctions - by $258 million. Here are the actions Russian government And Rostec much more difficult to understand. To take away time from ourselves to develop a project for the construction of power plants in Crimea using domestic equipment, and not to take into account all the risks of the only possible foreign supplier. Why, for what, why - completely inexplicable.
Of course, anyone who wants to see the actions of a German company as the source of the scandal can continue to remain unconvinced. But the listed facts, it seems to us, speak of a completely different reason - the bungling of responsible Russian officials, their complete irresponsibility instead of strict adherence to all state interests.
Respondent: A. S. Lebedev, Doctor of Technical Sciences
— On June 18, a new high-tech plant for the production of gas turbine units was opened. What challenges does the company face?
The main task is the introduction of gas turbine technologies on the Russian market and the maximum localization of the production of large gas turbines with a capacity of 170, 300 MW for power plants operating in the combined cycle.
I would suggest taking a step back and taking a short excursion into history so that it is clear where we came from, how the joint venture between Siemens and Power Machines was organized. It all started in 1991, when a joint venture was created - then still LMZ and Siemens - to assemble gas turbines. An agreement was concluded on the transfer of technology to the then Leningrad Metal Plant, which is now part of OJSC Power Machines. This joint venture assembled 19 turbines over 10 years. Over the years, LMZ has accumulated production experience so that it can learn not only to assemble these turbines, but also to produce some components independently.
Based on this experience, in 2001 a license agreement was concluded with Siemens for the right to manufacture, sales and after-sales service for turbines of the same type. They received the Russian marking GTE-160. These are turbines that produce 160 MW, and in combined cycle units 450 MW, that is, this is essentially the joint operation of a gas turbine with steam turbines. And 35 of these GTE-160 turbines were manufactured and sold under license from Siemens, 31 of them for the Russian market. They are quite widely used in St. Petersburg, in particular, at the North-Western Thermal Power Plant, at the Southern Thermal Power Plant, at the Pravoberezhnaya Thermal Power Plant, in Kaliningrad, in Southern Siberia, in Moscow 6 such turbines operate in combined cycle units. One can even say without false modesty that this is the most common gas turbine in the Russian Federation today. This is a fact. No one has produced such a quantity, such a series of powerful gas turbines.
And now, based on this experience of joint production, a new agreement was concluded and a new joint venture, Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies, was created. This happened more than three years ago, in December 2011. Now we will produce turbines at our own plant. The tasks remain the same - to master production, achieve maximum localization and fit into the government’s development program for import substitution.
— So, in essence, you have become a competitor to the Power Machines?
When it comes to gas turbines, we are not competitors. Because Power Machines has been producing only steam and hydraulic turbines since 2011. The entire gas turbine business with engineers, with the continuation of contracts, was transferred to the joint venture by Power Machines. We are 35 percent owned by Power Machines and 65 percent owned by Siemens. That is, we, the entire gas turbine part of Power Machines, entered into this joint venture. In other words, we are business partners, not competitors.
— How do Siemens gas turbines differ from domestic analogues?
In this power class, the only example of domestic products is the Rybinsk turbine NPO Saturn - GTD-110 with a capacity of 110 MW. Today this is the most powerful turbine in the Russian Federation own production. Turbines up to 30 MW based on the conversion of aircraft engines are quite widely represented in Russia. There is a very wide field for competition here, and Russian products are the main ones in this power class. There is no such competitive product in Russia today for large gas turbines. 110 MW is all that is available; today 6 such installations have been manufactured. The customer has certain complaints about their operation. Since this is, in a certain sense, a competitor, I would not like to comment on the results of its activities.
— What latest developments do you use?
All possible developments by Siemens. We are an enterprise that is mainly owned by this corporation, as a result of which we have access to both the documentation and all the results of scientific research activities implemented in those gas turbines for which we have a license - these are 170 and 307 MW. Documents in the scope of production organized in Gorelovo are available to us without any restrictions; they allow us to introduce the latest developments.
Along with this, we ourselves participate in these developments. An example is our cooperation with the Polytechnic University. The university is now divided into institutes, and the Institute of Energy and Electrical Engineering has the Department of Turbines, Hydraulic Machines and Aviation Engines, this is one of the divisions of the institute. We have agreements with this and one other department and conduct joint research activities. In one case, we are testing a gas turbine element—the output diffuser. Quite a lot of work has already been done within two years. interesting work at the stand. The stand, which we actually paid for and helped create.
At the same department, but in the hydraulic machines division, we are conducting another research work. Why on the topic of hydraulic machines? The fact is that gas turbines are equipped with hydraulic drives, and this very department has accumulated extensive experience in research on the drive of various elements. Elements that control the operation process of a gas turbine and hydraulic turbine. Moreover, for the sake of this cooperation, the department participated in serious competition, where she defeated her main competitors from a Chinese university.
In addition to joint research work with these two departments, we also give lectures, try to support and train our staff while they are still students.
— Are your main customers Russian or foreign enterprises?
We have a license with the right to produce and sell in Russia and the CIS. By agreement with the main founder, Siemens Corporation, we can sell to other countries. And without any additional approvals, we sell gas turbines to Russian energy structures, these are Gazprom Energoholding, Inter RAO, Fortum and other owners of energy systems.
— In your opinion, what is the key difference between the organization of engineering work at your enterprise?
It seems to me that there are no fundamental differences from a Russian production enterprise. Probably because over the past 20 years, Russian enterprises have become a little similar to Western ones - Western management has appeared, borrowed management systems have been introduced technological process and quality. That is, there is no revolutionary difference felt.
But I would highlight two differences. The first is specialization, that is, an engineer is engaged in purely technical, more even creative activity. There is no such definite dispersion in the activities of an engineer as in a typical Russian enterprise, when he is used almost everywhere.
I will demonstrate with the example of engineering - there are at least three such engineering at Siemens: one main engineering for a product, for example, for a gas turbine, where the gas turbine unit itself is created, all its internals, all its technical solutions, concepts are implemented. The second engineering is service engineering, which deals with upgrades, revisions, inspections, and it does not create a new product. The third engineering can be characterized as technical solutions for system integration, which integrates the gas turbine into the plant equipment - all air preparation devices for its operation, fuel supply, gas facilities, which must be in connection with other elements of the power plant. And again, he is not creating a new product, but focusing on an area outside the main gas turbine.
Second fundamental difference our production is due to the fact that Siemens is a global company. And this is both good and difficult at the same time. In the global corporation Siemens, all procedures, rules, and regulatory documents must be universal for the countries of Latin America, Finland, China, Russia and other countries. They should be quite voluminous, quite detailed and they must be followed. And you have to get used to this in a global company - to many global processes and rules, spelled out in great detail.
— What role does participation in engineering forums, such as the Russian Engineering Assembly, play in the development of the enterprise? Are you planning to participate in the upcoming November event?
Yes, we plan to participate. We would like to not only declare ourselves that we are a company with developed engineering, a company that works with scientific institutions and does its own developments together with Siemens. We would also like some kind of search for partners on topics of interest, for example, localization of production. We probably just don’t know about the opportunities that really exist. We need to operate more with some kind of databases, be more flexible in searching for subsuppliers, suppliers, materials, components, or vice versa, engineering services. Because now is such a difficult time when you need to evaluate everything from an economic point of view, when you need to weigh again what you need to do yourself and what services are better to purchase, while simultaneously assessing how profitable it will be not only at the moment, but also in the future. Maybe you need to make certain investments and in the future master some kind of production or services yourself. In order to acquire this outlook, participation in such conferences and meetings is very important. So we will definitely participate.
Zabotina Anastasia
The story of the supply of Siemens turbines to Crimea may receive a political continuation. Germany proposes that the EU impose sanctions on several Russian citizens, and the German concern itself does not rule out internal personnel changes in connection with the scandal. However, while all the loud statements are made by unnamed sources, the Kremlin sees no reason to give official comments on this matter, and the Ministry of Energy intends to launch new generation in Crimea on time.
Germany proposed to impose sanctions on 3-4 citizens of the Russian Federation due to the scandal with Siemens turbines, which, as the concern assures, were delivered to Crimea bypassing the sanctions and without the knowledge of the manufacturer. As Reuters wrote on Monday, citing its own sources, Germany has submitted a corresponding proposal for consideration by the EU.
According to one senior diplomatic source in Brussels, the sanctions list may include employees from the Russian Ministry of Energy and the Russian company that transported the turbines.
Presumably, this issue will be considered at the European Commission meeting on Wednesday, when it is also expected to discuss the EU’s retaliatory measures against the United States for tightening anti-Russian sanctions, including those directed against Nord Stream 2. The European Commission has not yet officially commented on this information.
Deputy official representative of the German Cabinet of Ministers Ulrike Demmer said that a decision on retaliatory measures for the supply of Siemens turbines to Crimea has not yet been made.
“Measures in response to these unacceptable actions are currently still being discussed,” Demmer was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti.
The Kremlin preferred to refrain from any comments on this matter.
“We do not consider it possible to comment on a Reuters message that does not contain any link to at least some intelligible source. Often, such messages later turned out to be fake. Therefore, we do not consider it possible to comment on this,” presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Meanwhile, on Sunday evening, the German newspaper Handelsblatt, citing its own sources, reported that the turbine scandal could also have “personnel consequences” for Siemens.
“Despite the fact that the company considers itself a victim, personnel consequences cannot be ruled out,” the publication notes, emphasizing that the topic of turbines in Crimea is now being actively discussed within the concern’s management. Some managers accuse the head of the Russian division, Dietrich Möller, of not reacting quickly enough to the first information about possible violations of the sanctions regime and not immediately organizing an inspection.
After this story, Siemens, the publication emphasizes, intends to create a new control mechanism over the installation of its equipment and carefully monitor its movement. In industrial circles in Germany they are confident that Siemens will rather put up with serious financial losses, but will not risk its reputation in the market.
Siemens representative Philipp Entsch also refused to comment on this information, emphasizing that the company presented its position on Friday.
Then the German concern announced the suspension of supplies of power equipment to Russian companies and launched a procedure for terminating license agreements with Russian companies in the field of supply of equipment for power plants.
Siemens claims that all four gas turbines, “which were delivered in the summer of 2016 for the project in Taman,” illegally entered Crimea. “This is a gross violation of Siemens supply contracts... and EU regulations,” the concern said in a press release.
The German company notes that it will continue the criminal prosecution of the client’s officials (Technopromexport), who were responsible for the movement of turbines to Crimea, as well as the trial, designed to prevent the supply of new equipment to the peninsula and ensure the return of already supplied equipment. The company confirmed plans to sell a stake in the Russian joint venture Interavtomatika.
Along with these tough statements, Siemens emphasized that they are not going to leave the Russian market, but will tighten the rules of work in the country: all new Siemens projects to create gas turbine equipment in Russia will be implemented only through a joint venture with Power Machines - Siemens Gas Technologies turbines" - and its own branch in Russia. And control over them will be tightened.
Siemens also updated its offer to buy back equipment for the Taman station and cancel the contract. On the same day, the Deputy Minister of Energy of Russia stated that the situation with Siemens’ intention to prevent the installation of its turbines in Crimea will not affect the launch date of power plants, which is scheduled for the first quarter of 2018
“The equipment that was installed [in Crimea] was produced in the Russian Federation. Our main goal is for the stations to begin producing generation in the first quarter of 2018. There is no other plan. Crimea is Russian territory and we need to secure it,” he said.
In connection with the scandal, the Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Denis Manturov also emphasized that the Russian side ensured maximum legal correctness when using Siemens technologies in the production of turbines for thermal power plants in Crimea. Simferopol and Sevastopol thermal power plants, according to him, will be equipped with Russian-made turbines, but using foreign elements.
Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies LLC (STGT) is a joint venture between Siemens AG (65%) and Power Machines OJSC (35%), created in 2011 in St. Petersburg. The plant develops, assembles, sells and services gas turbines with a capacity of over 60 MW for the Russian and CIS markets, as well as localizes production.
In June 2015, a new production site of Siemens Gas Turbine Technologies was opened in the Leningrad region. The plant, built from scratch and equipped with the most high-tech equipment, has become one of largest enterprises energy sector in the region.
The STGT product line includes gas turbines SGT5-2000E with a capacity of 187 MW and SGT5-4000F with a capacity of 329 MW. This equipment, which provides reliable and uninterrupted power supply, is used in equipping and modernizing thermal power plants and state district power plants. At the production site, mechanical processing of rotor parts and stator units of turbines is carried out, and a full cycle of assembly work is carried out. In the future, the plant will also assemble low- and medium-power turbines (for example, SGT-800 with a capacity of 53 MW). In addition, the production of mainline and booster compressors with a capacity of 6 to 32 MW was transferred to STGT.
The Siemens Gas Turbine Technology plant is the most important investment project Siemens company, implemented as part of the strategy to localize production in Russia. The company is fully integrated into the global technological and production network of Siemens, which includes similar plants in Germany and the USA.
For effective maintenance of supplied equipment, a regional service center has been created at the enterprise. A warehouse of components necessary for the repair and operation of turbines is also organized on the territory of the plant complex. Currently, STGT provides service for the equipment of the Kirishi and Nyagan State District Power Plants.
In April 2016, a modern Remote Monitoring Center was put into operation at the plant. At this service site, remote diagnostics of the operation of gas turbine equipment of power plants is carried out in real time. This is where the received data is stored and processed. To analyze the technical condition of turbines installed at facilities in Russia, data from the entire fleet of Siemens gas turbine units operating in the world is used.
The center uses more than 1,000 mathematical models to evaluate the functioning of the main turbine components. The remote monitoring center was created to prevent emergency situations, reduce service time and increase the reliability of Siemens equipment.