GE gas turbine upgrades in the time of coronavirus

Image: Baochang inspection and repair project underway

Built by Samsung C&T, the LNG-fuelled Meghnaghat power plant employs two GE 9F.03 gas turbines, one GE D11 steam turbine and three H53 generators.

The AGP upgrade, along with steam turbine refurbishment and control upgrades is expected to result in up to 6.7% more power output, up to 3.3 % heat rate improvement, up to 2% efficiency increase, combined with enhanced operational flexibility and extension of maintenance interval to 32 000 hours.

The AGP upgrade is also being implemented on two 9F.03 turbines at Edison’s 780 MW Torviscosa combined cycle plant in Italy, building on the success of the Candela AGP project, says GE. It is expected to boost plant output by over 6% and efficiency by around 1%.

May saw the successful – and safe – completion of a GE modernisation project at a further 9F.03 gas turbine in Italy, that at Tirreno Power’s 1200 MW Torrevaldaliga Sud plant. The scope included installation of a new rotor and an enhanced compressor system.

The project started in late February, and as the Covid-19 pandemic escalated, engineers from GE and its field services arm, FieldCore, worked with Tirreno to quickly implement an array of safety measures including frequent disinfections at the site, distancing, provision of personal protective equipment, and creation of a joint GE–FieldCore taskforce to monitor and address the rapidly evolving situation and ensure compliance with regulations.

GE also reports successful completion, under Covid-19 conditions, of an MXL2 upgrade on a GT13E2 gas turbine at ADNOC Refining’s General Utilities Plant in Ruwais, UAE, improving plant output by 10.7 MW.

Planning and executing such an upgrade would typically take up to 18 months, says GE, but the project was completed within six months, despite significant challenges posed by the pandemic.

Another recent field services success reported by GE, in the face of “unexpected and unprecedented” difficulties due to Covid-19, was a major inspection and repair project carried out to address ageing issues on two 9E.03 gas turbines at the 360 MW Baochang power plant in Shenzhen, China.

This complex modernisation project involved a good deal of lifting work and entailed a complete inspection of the gas turbine, with replacement, as necessary, all detachable parts – as many as 300 items — including rotor, hot gas path, compressor, combustion and air inlet system. The initial schedule was 35 days but was extended to 69 days due to the customer’s expanded work scope and the 14 day quarantine before the project commenced.

GE has in addition won an order to carry out its GT26 HE (high efficiency) gas turbine upgrade in Japan, on a GT26 MXL2 unit at the Chiba power plant of JFE Steel Corporation (JFE).

It is the third order received by GE for the GT26 HE upgrade, introduced in 2019, the other two being for UK plants, Shoreham (Drax) and Enfield (Uniper).

The Chiba HE upgrade package is expected to be completed in Baden and shipped to Japan for installation in 1Q 2021 with operation anticipated by mid-2Q 2021.