Alstom to build UK’s largest combined cycle power plant

London - Alstom has been awarded a contract worth approximately €1 billion by RWE npower plc for the design and construction of a full turnkey, gas-fired combined-cycle power plant in Pembrokeshire, Wales. With an output of about 2,000 MW, the new plant will be the biggest and one of the most efficient of its kind in the UK.

For each of the five KA26-1 Single-Shaft Combined Cycle Power Plant Power Blocks, the Alstom in-house core components are: one advanced-class GT26 gas turbine, one triple-pressure heat recovery steam generator (HRSG), one compact state-of-the-art reheat type STF30C steam turbine and one TOPGAS (hydrogen-cooled) generator. Worldwide, 85 of Alstom’s GT24/GT26 units are in commercial operation and have accumulated over 3 million hours of operating time.

The new plant will be built on the site of the previous oil-fired power station. It will include five Alstom GT26 turbines and accompanying core components supplied by Alstom. It will offer high load flexibility while maintaining low emissions and high efficiency.

The plant will be able to be run as efficiently at low load as at full capacity during peak hours, allowing the operator to respond to fluctuating energy demands. It will be among the most efficient of its kind.

The Pembroke power plant is part of RWE npower’s plan to renew its power generation fleet with new, more efficient and more environmentally friendly power plants.

"This new project clearly demonstrates that Alstom’s engineering expertise is crucial to the power industry in the UK, and around the world. This is the second contract signed by Alstom with RWE npower in less than 2 years, which underlines our customer’s confidence in our engineering ability," said Philippe Joubert, president of Alstom Power.

The project is the second one that Alstom has signed with RWE npower in the UK, following the contract won in 2007 for the gas-fired 1,650 MW Staythorpe power plant, currently under construction in Nottinghamshire. Alstom is also building in the UK the Centrica’s Langage and E.On’s Grain power plants. Including the Pembroke plant, these four power plants will add close to 6 GW of new electrical power to the UK grid.