The World’s First Autonomous Power Plant Would Be A Win For The Grid

Source: Johnny Wood · FORBES · | February 17, 2021

Mitsubishi Power’s T-Point 2 plant is designed to be a seismic shift in power generation. MITSUBISHI POWER

It’s not every day that the sequel surpasses the original. But that’s shaping up to be true for T-Point 2, a next-generation power plant in Takasago, Japan, an hour west of Kobe.

The original facility, known as T-Point, was a game-changer when it opened back in 1997. The demonstration plant enabled Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) Group to test and validate gas turbines and other equipment in real-world power plant conditions, a significant departure from the industry norm of shop tests and beta sites.

Today, however, the site is home to Mitsubishi Power’s T-Point 2, a newly constructed facility brimming with cutting-edge digital technologies that are expected to make it the world’s first autonomous combined-cycle power plant.

In recognition of this breakthrough in the making for power generation and for the grid itself, Power magazine named it the "2020 Power Plant of the Year."

Digital from the start

Operating commercially since the summer of 2020, the gas-fired plant supplies 566MW of power to the regional grid in Japan. But what makes this facility so special is how it supplies power.

Even before it began operating, T-Point 2 was digital to the core: 3D virtual reality simulations of construction were used as the physical plant was constructed. This gives Mitsubishi Power the future capability to simulate assembly procedures and improve productivity and quality control during construction.

This digital focus has continued into the plant’s operation. At the heart of T-Point 2 is Mitsubishi Power’s Tomoni suite of digital power plant solutions, which employs cutting-edge, AI-enabled analytics to automate a wide range of operational processes. Tomoni – the Japanese word for “together” – reflects the importance of collaboration with customers to solve their unique challenges.