9FAs start up in Pakistan

Some 747 MW of combined cycle capacity started up at Guddu Thermal Power Complex in Sindh, Pakistan on Friday. GE supplied and installed two GE 9FA gas turbines and associated auxiliary equipment at the plant

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Located in Kashmore, Sindh, the complex has a capacity of 1,655MW and the new addition will take the total production capacity to 2,402MW, it said.

The additional 747MW is enough to power more than 700,000 homes annually, it said.

Harbin Electric International Company (HEI) signed a contract with GE for the supply and installation of the equipment in 2010. The turbines were shipped in 2011 and will operate on natural gas but can also run on high-speed diesel under emergency situations, the statement said.

With combined cycle efficiency at greater than 58 percent, the GE 9FA gas turbines at the Guddu power plant are among the most efficient in the world and utilise advanced materials.

According to estimates, power consumption in Pakistan is increasing at a rate of eight percent per annum. GE has signed a memorandum of understanding with the government to develop energy resources to meet the projected demand of 54,000MW by 2020, the statement said.

In the 60s, GE was among the first companies to install steam and gas turbines in Pakistan. Today, GE-built equipment provides more than 25 percent of the electricity generated in Pakistan and GE has three offices in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi, it said.