BUCHAREST, Romania, June 19 (UPI) -- GE Energy announced plans to expand its presence in Romania.
GE said it will help to build a combined-cycle power plant in Brazi, Romania. The plant will be built for Romanian oil and gas producer Petrom S.A. and will be the first application in Romania of GE Energy's highly efficient Frame 9FB gas turbine.
GE Energy will work with Greek firm Metka to build one of the region's largest gas-fired power plants at Petrom's refinery in Brazi.
The Brazi project is Romania's largest investment in the power generation sector since the Cernavoda Unit 2 nuclear project, which began in 1989. It also marks the entry of Petrom and its parent company, OMV, into the power generation industry.
The new combined-cycle plant would produce approximately 860 megawatts of power, with about 20 percent to be used by Petrom for its own operations. The remainder will be sold on the Romanian power grid. Construction is slated to start early next year, and the plant is expected to begin supplying power in the second half of 2011.
This large turnkey project is a first for GE Energy in the region, according to Rod Christie, region executive-Eastern Europe for GE Energy. Romania is one of the fastest-growing GE locations in Europe.
GE has been active in Romania since 1984 and has more than 900 employees in the country, with businesses operating in the energy, aviation, healthcare, lighting and power protection, financial and real estate sectors.
