GE Vernova Fulfills Largest Gas Turbine Order for its 7HA.03 for Saudi Arabia Power Plants
Eight gas turbines will be delivered to the Taiba 1 and Qassim 1 power plants, which are expected to deliver up to 3.8 GW of electricity to the national grid.
GE Vernova secured an order from SEPCOIII Electric Power Construction Co. (SEPCOIII) for six 7HA.03 gas turbines and two 7E.03 gas turbines for two new power plants in Saudi Arabia—Taiba 1 in the western region and Qassim 1 in the central region. GE Vernova also signed a 21-year service agreement to support plant operations with an ACWA Power subsidiary, National Operations & Maintenance Co. (NOMAC).
“The development of the Taiba 1 and Qassim 1 plants is a very ambitious project, and we are proud to support it,” said a spokesperson of SEPCOIII, an engineering, procurement, and construction firm. “We are also excited to work with GE Vernova to evaluate how carbon-capture solutions could potentially be integrated with these gas power plants to help lower emissions. We expect to see increased longer-term demand for gas plants integrated with carbon-capture technologies, which is key to reducing emissions from fossil fuels and helping fight climate change.”
Taiba 1 and Qassim 1 plants are slated to deliver up to 3.8 GW of electricity to the grid—equivalent to the required power needs of approximately 1.2 million homes in Saudi Arabia. The plants will be completed in 2027 and can be equipped with post-combustion carbon-capture systems to reduce CO2 emissions in the Kingdom. The 7HA.03 gas turbines can also burn up to 50% by volume of hydrogen blended with natural gas.
7HA.03 gas turbine; image credits: GE Vernova
“This project, which marks our largest single order for 7HA.03 gas turbines to date in the region, is expected to open up a new chapter for gas power generation in Saudi Arabia,” said Joseph Anis, President & CEO of GE Vernova's Gas Power business in Europe, Middle East & Africa. “We are proud of developing our first 7HA.03 project at GESAT and boosting the localization of the gas turbines industry in Saudi Arabia, in alignment with the Kingdom’s goals for more diversified and sustainable economic growth. We are delighted to team with SEPCOIII and ACWA Power’s NOMAC to deploy our power generation technologies, services, and expertise in natural gas combined cycle plant engineering, operability, and plant integration to support the transition to a lower-carbon energy future.”
As part of the 21-year service contract, GE Vernova will conduct maintenance and repair and supply parts. The company’s Monitoring & Diagnostics Center is expected to oversee real-time operating conditions and offer remote diagnostics tools using digital analytics technology.
“We have developed a productive and successful role-model relationship with GE Vernova that will enable our collective organizations to deliver meaningful innovation and energy contributions to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” said Marco Arcelli, ACWA Power CEO. “With today’s signing of this contract, we mark not only a milestone in our cooperation but pave the way to future collaborations for the safer, more reliable, and more sustainable production of electricity in the Kingdom.”
The order was booked in March 2024 and accounted for in GE Vernova’s Q1 earnings announcement.
In April 2024, GE Vernova’s Gas Power segment received an order from Louisville Gas and Electric Co. (LG&E) and Kentucky Utilities (KU) for its 7HA.03 combined-cycle plant equipment. The equipment package will be used to power a new NGCC unit at LG&E and KU’s Mill Creek Generating Station in Louisville, KY. The NGCC is replacing two coal-generation units at the station, which was approved by the Kentucky Public Service Commission following an evaluation of LG&E and KU’s plans.
