*The new technology can help gas plant power producers save up to $2 million in fuel annually
•New Upgrade Continues GE’s Investments in Its Power Services business
•New MXL2 with Additive Manufactured Performance Upgrade to Boost the Power and Efficiency of Existing GT13E2 Gas Turbines
•Breakthrough Technology Can Help Power Producers Achieve up to $3 Million of Additional Revenue per Year and Save up to $2 Million in Fuel Annually
•Launch Customer Vattenfall Europe Wärme AG to Implement Upgrade at the Heizkraftwerk Berlin-Mitte Power Plant in Germany’s Capital City of Berlin
•The Upgrade Will Enable Vattenfall’s District Heating Plant to Increase Electrical Power by 21 Megawatts (MW) and Thermal Heat Generation by About 4 MWs While Extending Intervals Between Major Inspections up to 48,000 hours
01 July 2018, Sweetcrude, Baden, Switzerland — GE Power (NYSE: GE) has announced the new MXL2 with Additive Manufactured Performance (AMP)—the world’s first upgrade solution for GE’s GT13E2 gas turbines that uses key components manufactured using additive technology.
The addition of additive manufactured parts into the MXL2 solution represents a turning point in the global power generation industry and confirms GE’s commitment to keeping its mature fleets competitive in today’s very dynamic marketplace.
The new technology can help gas plant power producers save up to $2 million in fuel annually while opening up the potential for additional revenue of up to $3 million annually in new power capacity. Today’s news also marks the third investment announcement GE Power is making in six weeks in its Power Services business.
“We’re continuing to invest in new technologies to keep our installed base competitive: the new MXL2 with AMP upgrade could not be manufactured with conventional methods and marks the first-of-its-kind solution with the injection of components manufactured by additive technologies,” said Scott Strazik, president and CEO of GE’s Power Services business.
“Because these components are made with a lightweight configuration and can be engineered to include advanced cooling channels, they help the gas turbine run more efficiently, representing a new frontier in turbine engineering and production. These savings translate directly into increased performance and provide turbine operators with greater fuel efficiency and more capacity. We’re excited to bring this technology to our GT13E2 fleet, which we acquired from Alstom in 2015.”
The new MXL2 with AMP include two components produced by GE’s Additive Manufacturing Works (AMW) teams in Birr, Switzerland, and Greenville, South Carolina, United States: the first-stage turbine vanes and heat shields.
These parts are among the turbine’s hottest-running components, and the significant amount of cooling air they traditionally require impacts the engine’s performance. Additive printing allows GE to use advanced cooling designs that considerably reduce the amount of cooling air the parts need, improving the turbine’s performance and offering operators potentially millions of dollars in benefits per year.
The breakthrough technology can significantly elevate the output and efficiency of existing GT13E2 gas turbines. It’s capable of:
- Reducing component cooling requirements by up to 25 percent.
- Increasing output up to 21 megawatts (MW) in combined-cycle configuration.
- Achieving efficiency improvement of up to 1.6 percent in combined-cycle configuration.
- Delivering maintenance intervals of up to 48,000 hours.
Latest Game Changer in Additive Technology at Vattenfall’s Heizkraftwerk Berlin-Mitte Power Plant
The MXL2 with AMP upgrade is a direct result of GE’s long-term commitment to additive manufacturing technology. Vattenfall began supporting this technology in 2015 with the installation of four different 3D printed components at its Heizkraftwerk Berlin-Mitte Power Plant near Germany’s capital city of Berlin.
GE’s Hardware Upgrades Help Increase Efficiency and Output at Azito Power Plant in Ivory Coast and SPDC in Nigeria
GE implements and supports power projects across Africa with the aim of strengthening the power sector by providing innovative power solutions. Some of the recent MXL2 upgrade projects include Azito Energie S.A. (Azito) who signed an agreement to upgrade two gas turbines at the company’s combined-cycle power plant and marks GE’s first GT13E2 MXL2 gas turbine upgrade (https://goo.gl/gTZbdY) order in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Also, MXL2 upgrade on Shell Petroleum Development Company’s (SPDC) Afam IV plant (https://goo.gl/L45SgV) will add additional 30MW capacity, enough power for approximately 200,000 Nigerian homes. In addition to increasing power output by up to 30 MW, upgrades on the turbines are expected to deliver a combined-cycle efficiency increase, resulting in significant fuel savings and reduced CO2 emissions. GE’s solutions will also extend inspection intervals for the gas turbines, reducing maintenance and repair expenses—which, in turn, will reduce overall plant costs and result in improving profitability.
