GE’s 9HA.02 turbines running commercially for the first time

GE Power’s first set of 9HA.02 gas turbines are in operation at a 1440 MW power plant in Malaysia.

The turbines—GE Power’s most efficient—offer the flexibility operators need as they contemplate a future that calls for lower CO2 emissions, said Amit Kulkarni, Global HA Product Lead for GE Power.

The 9HA.02 turbine incorporates the company’s latest technology, including combustors that are capable of running up to 50% hydrogen, Kulkarni said.

Southern Power Generation’s 1440 MW combined cycle Track 4A power plant is home to GE’s first 9HA.02 gas turbines in commercial operation globally.

Malaysia, which has traditionally relied on coal-fired power plants, aims to achieve 20% renewable fuel penetration by 2025.

The power plant is a project by CTCI Corp. (CTCI), and Southern Power Generation Sdn Bhd (SPG) called Southern Power Generation’s Track 4A Power Plant, a combined cycle gas power plant in Pasir Gudang, Johor, Malaysia.

The plant has two single-shaft generating blocks, each equipped with a 9HA.02 gas turbine and a STF-D650 steam turbine, driving a W88 generator, and, for the first time installed in an H-Class Plant, a GE Once Through Heat Recovery Steam Generator delivering higher combined cycle efficiency. The plant is controlled by GE’s Mark VIe integrated Plant Control System. Equipped with a single operator interface and common troubleshooting tools, plant personnel can operate the plant more efficiently and, when issues do arise, rapidly recover to improve overall plant availability.

In addition, under the terms of a 21-year agreement, GE will provide services and digital solutions to improve asset visibility, reliability, and availability of the Track 4A plant—which will produce the equivalent electricity needed to power approximately three million homes in Malaysia.

“We have a longstanding relationship with GE and we trust its HA technology will help us meet the increasing power demand and contribute to long-term energy security needs in Malaysia” said Dato’ Haji Nor Azman bin Mufti, Chairman of SPG. “We are proud to see how GE has adapted with hard work and efficiency to achieve the start of their first ever commercial operation for the 9HA.02 gas turbines despite the COVID-19 pandemic without compromising on health and safety.”

GE said it will provide a full spectrum of digital solutions and plant improvement services, major inspections of the 9HA.02 gas turbines, along with technical advisory services. Overall plant performance will be monitored and enhanced with GE Digital’s Predix Asset Performance Management software to help improve asset visibility, reliability, and availability while reducing operating and maintenance costs. In addition, data collected from sensors throughout the facility will be monitored and analyzed at GE’s Monitoring & Diagnostics (M&D) Center in Kuala Lumpur.

“Today marks a tremendous milestone for our HA fleet, as we celebrate the world’s first commercial operation of our flagship turbine here in Malaysia,” said Ramesh Singaram, President and CEO of GE Gas Power in Asia. “We look forward to helping Southern Power Generation reap the benefits of our latest technology as well as combined services and digital solutions, helping to deliver more reliable and flexible power generation for the country.”

GE’s HA gas turbines are the world’s largest and the most efficient gas turbines with more than 100 units ordered by more than 45 customers across 20 countries. GE’s second-generation H-class fleet has accumulated more than 850,000 (as of January 2021) operating hours of commercial experience. To further decrease carbon emissions utilizing gas power, GE’s H-Class gas turbine portfolio currently has the capability to burn up to 50% by volume of hydrogen when blended with natural gas.