* Industry's Fastest Deployment and Installation Enables Technology to Meet Shifting Power Needs Everywhere
* Industry-Leading Flexibility and Efficiency without the Need for Water Significantly Reduces Environmental Impact and Meets ecomagination Qualifications
* New Gas Turbine Fueled by Natural Gas is Strong Fit for Asia's Combined Heat and Power, Combined-Cycle, Mining and Oil and Gas Segments
* GE's New Innovation to Meet the Region's Demand for Future Energy Solutions that Enable Independence and Fast Decision-Making
KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA---September 27, 2011---GE (NYSE: GE) announced its latest energy innovation to support the growth and development of Asia's rising economies with fast, flexible, natural gas-driven power generation. The new FlexAero* LM6000-PH, a highly-efficient 50-megawatt (MW) gas turbine, is a strong fit for China and the Asia Pacific region, where power generation fueled by natural gas is projected to account for 40 percent of all power generation additions through 2020.
GE recently unveiled the FlexAero as a solution for businesses and communities around the globe who need power, fast. Coupled with breakthrough flexibility and efficiency, GE's FlexAero can operate without the need for water, which helps relieve the stress on Asia's water resources. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, it projects more than 1 billion people in Asia alone will experience negative impacts on water resources as a result of climate change by 2050.
The multimillion dollar investment in research and development to create the FlexAero highlights GE's focus on creating advanced technologies to harness the increased availability of natural gas for power generation.
GE's FlexAero helps meet the needs of power generators who must adapt to fast-changing energy demands. Leveraging flexible, cleaner-burning natural gas, GE's new ecomagination-qualified technology offers rapid response to power demands anywhere around the globe through the industry's fastest deployment and installation. Once on site, the FlexAero can reach full power in approximately five minutes[1]---less time than it takes to brew a cup of coffee.
Stable, Reliable Power for Anyone, Anywhere
"Over the past 10 years, we have seen our customer base rapidly change and expand to include industrial businesses and remote communities that need reliable, independent power to grow," said Darryl Wilson, president and CEO---aeroderivative gas turbines for GE Power & Water. "We developed the FlexAero to give those customers advanced technology, leading in flexibility and efficiency, which can be shipped and installed faster than any technology in its class and can operate independent from the power grid."
The FlexAero is the industry's most flexible aeroderivative gas turbine, with a ramp-up rate of 50 MW per minute, allowing it to meet fluctuations in demand in near-real time. The technology also is engineered to provide industry-leading efficiency for an aeroderivative turbine operating in a combined-cycle capacity and can reach ultra-high efficiency through cogeneration at rates above 80 percent. The FlexAero connects energy independence and speed of delivery with world-class flexibility and efficiency, enabling businesses and communities to create the power they need to thrive, while reducing CO₂ emissions by 38,400 metric tons per gas turbine, per year---equivalent to removing 7,400 cars from U.S. roads.
GE's FlexAero not only has 25 percent more power than its predecessor, but also it packs extra exhaust energy, which enhances its capability for combined heat and power (CHP) applications and makes it an ideal solution for the small power producers (SPPs). This cogeneration segment is forecasted to add more than 3.5 gigawatts in Thailand alone over the next five years and 5 gigawatts per year over the next decade.
The new machine also can meet the needs of the mining segment, utilities and independent power producers for simple-cycle applications in Indonesia, Australia, New Zealand and the Phillippines. In addition, the FlexAero is a good match for the oil and gas segment, especially for mechanical drive applications for liquefied natural gas (LNG), primarily in Australia.
"This unmatched combination of speed, reliability and efficiency gives independence to an expanding world of non-traditional power generators who want to plan for fast-changing energy demands," added Wilson. "The GE FlexAero gives our customers energy certainty in a rapidly changing world."
FlexEfficiency through Natural Gas
The ecomagination-qualified FlexAero is fueled by cleaner-burning natural gas, enabling businesses and communities with growing power needs to meet demand more sustainably. With current natural gas prices well below $5 per thousand cubic feet and projected to remain in that range for the next 25 years, high efficiency gas turbines like the FlexAero offer electricity at a significantly lower cost than other fuel alternatives, as well as energy stability by harnessing abundant natural gas supplies.
The FlexAero joins GE Energy's FlexEfficiency portfolio of power conversion products, designed to provide sustainable, efficient power to the grid and enable the uptake of renewables by addressing the issues of intermittency and reliability. GE launched the first product in this portfolio, the 510-MW FlexEfficiency 50 Combined Cycle Power Plant, in May 2011. The FlexAero LM6000-PH also is part of GE's ecomagination commitment to drive clean energy technology through innovation and R&D investment.
"As ASEAN countries start looking to future energy solutions to keep up with the region's growing economy, many ASEAN governments already are putting in place policies to encourage the development of renewable energy such as wind, solar and biomass, as well as geothermal. We already have seen great demand for the FlexEfficiency 50 from markets like Harbin in China, underlining the demand for such technologies because they enable independence and fast decision-making," said Kenji Uenishi, president, GE Energy, Asia Pacific.
Sustainable by Design
The FlexAero includes GE's innovative DLE2.0 technology, which reduces NOx emissions to just 15 ppm without the need for water. The technology allows customers to save more than 26 million gallons of water per turbine, per year, which is typically used to dilute CO₂ and NOx emissions in a gas turbine.
"Today, 30 percent of the world's population is water constrained. By 2025, the number will reach 60 percent," said Steve Bolze, president and CEO of GE Power & Water. "As global energy demand increases, so does the stress on our water supply---a reality that we take very seriously when we develop new technologies across our portfolio. The FlexAero is the only gas turbine of its kind that combines flexibility and efficiency at these levels with zero water requirements. We see this combination as critical to meeting growing energy demand in a sustainable way, and GE is well-positioned to meet the needs of our customers who want to power their operations reliably and responsibly."
Built on GE's Aeroderivative Heritage
GE's aeroderivative business, headquartered in Houston, brings power to businesses and communities around the world by modifying highly reliable GE aviation engines to burn natural gas and/or biofuels for efficient, reliable energy. These jet engine-based power generation units, which range from 18-100 MW, help energy companies take advantage of the growing trend to use abundant, cleaner-burning natural gas to power a cleaner, more productive world.
GE's LM6000 family of aeroderivative gas turbines have a product heritage of more than 1,000 units shipped and 21+ million operating hours with more than 99 percent reliability. Like all of GE's aeroderivative gas turbines, the FlexAero will be manufactured in Cincinnati, Ohio, and packaged in Houston.
About GE's ecomagination
GE is driving a global energy transformation with a focus on innovation and R&D investment to accelerate the development and deployment of clean energy technology. Since its inception in 2005, 115 ecomagination-qualified products have been brought to market with revenues reaching $18 billion in 2009. With $5 billion invested in R&D its first five years, GE committed to doubling its ecomagination investment and collaborate with partners to accelerate a new era of energy innovation. The company will invest $10 billion in R&D over five years and double operational energy efficiency while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption. For more information, click here to visit the ecomagination website.
About GE
GE (NYSE: GE) is an advanced technology, services and finance company taking on the world's toughest challenges. Dedicated to innovation in energy, health, transportation and infrastructure, GE operates in more than 100 countries and employs about 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.ge.com.
GE also serves the energy sector by providing technology and service solutions that are based on a commitment to quality and innovation. The company continues to invest in new technology solutions and grow through strategic acquisitions to strengthen its local presence and better serve customers around the world. The businesses that comprise GE Energy---GE Power & Water, GE Energy Services and GE Oil & Gas---work together with more than 90,000 global employees and 2010 revenues of $38 billion, to provide integrated product and service solutions in all areas of the energy industry including coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear energy; renewable resources such as water, wind, solar and biogas; as well as other alternative fuels and new grid modernization technologies to meet 21st century energy needs.
*Trademark of the General Electric Company.
Howard Masto
Masto Public Relations
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Gina DeRossi
Soteryx Corporation
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