Grid Frequency Response · Injecting Power, By Generator Type

Not Every Generator Responds at the Same Speed

The "Injecting Power" step looks different depending on what's actually generating the power. Four technologies, compared.

Technology Sensing Delay Valve / Gate Response Time to Full Requested Response
Battery Inverter (PLL) 20–50 ms 50–80 ms IGBT firing gates 100–200 ms
Gas Turbine (Governor) 0–20 ms 100–300 ms fuel valve travel ~300 ms
Steam Turbine (Governor) 0–20 ms 100–500 ms steam control valve travel ~500 ms
Hydro Turbine (Governor) ~20 ms 200–1,000+ ms wicket gate travel Beyond the generic primary-response modeling window — no verified hydro-specific figure