WILMINGTON, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 25, 2005--GE Energy's nuclear business has been awarded a multi-million dollar contract to upgrade the monitoring and control systems for the Forsmark Nuclear Power Station, located on Sweden's east coast.
GE is supplying Forsmarks Kraftgrupp AB of Osthammar, Sweden (a subsidiary of state-run utility, Vattenfall AB) with its Power Range Neutron Monitor (PRNM) system, based on GE's high-speed digital technology.
Forsmarks Kraftgrupp ordered the new PRNM equipment as part of the utility's multi-year program to upgrade plant performance and safety systems. The new system will replace the three-unit, 3,117-megawatt plant's original power range monitoring equipment. The operator plans to uprate the plant's production by 410 megawatts.
The utility's 25-year-old, boiling water reactor (BWR) facility is located in Forsmark, an industrial village along the Baltic Sea, 60 miles northeast of Stockholm.
"This order represents an important expansion of GE's partnership with Forsmarks Kraftgrupp, which is committed to operating the Forsmark station at optimal performance and safety levels," said Andy White, President and CEO of GE Energy's nuclear business. "From a global perspective, this contract reflects an industry-wide increase in demand for advanced monitoring and control systems as operators around the world seek to upgrade their existing reactors."
Sweden operates 11 nuclear power plants that provide about 50 percent of the country's electricity, and Forsmark contributes about one-sixth of that supply.
GE Energy's PRNM system takes advantage of several enhanced features to improve system operation and includes automated system surveillance testing.
The primary function of the PRNM is to monitor the reactor power level and initiate automatic protective actions to ensure compliance with plant safety limits. The system collects and processes signals from in-core detectors and communicates with the core-monitoring computer, display computer and other plant systems.
GE's contract with Forsmarks Kraftgrupp includes design, hardware and software, engineering, licensing support, operator display assemblies and training. GE previously installed control equipment at two of Forsmark's reactors in 1993.
GE's PRNM system, a key element in upgrading plant's safety equipment, will be installed in Unit 2 during that reactor's next scheduled refueling and maintenance outage in July 2006. Installation for units 1 and 3 will be performed during their respective outages in 2007.
GE Energy's nuclear business, headquartered in Wilmington, N.C., develops advanced light water reactors and provides a wide array of technology-based products and services to help owners of both boiling and pressurized water reactors safely operate their facilities with greater efficiency and output.
About GE Energy
GE Energy is one of the world's leading suppliers of power generation and energy delivery technology, with 2004 revenues of $17.3 billion. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, GE Energy provides equipment, service and management solutions across the power generation, oil and gas, distributed power and energy rental industries.
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