Alstom retrofit solutions deliver additional output and efficiency to US plants

More than 200 MW additional capacity added to the US grid in 2010

As a means of highlighting its focus on an increasingly important market, Alstom announced today that it has successfully completed the delivery and installation of equipment for five key fossil and nuclear retrofit projects in the United States (US) in 2010.

Retrofits provide a means for power plant operators to extend the life of existing power plants by increasing output or plant efficiency. Such an ability to extend the life of existing power plants is particularly important in the US, which has a large but relatively old fleet of power plants. The US has the worlds largest installed fleet at 1104 GW1. Over 45% of the power is generated by coal-fired power s and 19% by nuclear power plants. More than 60% of the coal-fired plants are above 30 years old. Of the 104 nuclear reactors licensed in the US, 70% of the fleet is over 30 years old. As these plants approach the end of their design life, they need to modernized or eventually shut down.

Four of the completed projects this year were undertaken to deliver more capacity and yielded cumulatively an additional output in excess of 200 MW, with the fifth project bringing a significant increase in efficiency to the plant.

Among the projects undertaken to increase capacity, Alstom executed the steam turbine retrofit at unit 4 of the Boswell Energy Centre coal fired plant in Cohasset, Minnesota owned by Minnesota Power. This is the second unit that Alstom has retrofitted for the customer after successfully completing unit 3 in 2009. Alstom also completed an LP steam turbine retrofit at unit 2 of the fossil-fired Rush Island power station in the US state of Missouri, where it delivered higher than guaranteed output increase. It is noteworthy that output increases at both plants have been achieved without an increase in emissions.

Nuclear retrofits that increased capacity include unit 2 of the North Anna nuclear power plant in Virginia, where one high pressure (HP) and two low pressure (LP) steam turbines were retrofitted. In addition, Alstom retrofitted three LP steam turbines at the Quad Cities nuclear power plant in Illinois. All these projects have successfully met their performance targets, exceeding their contractual guarantees.

Projects to increase efficiency included the LP and intermediate pressure (IP) steam turbine retrofit at unit 4 of the Crystal River coal-fired plant in Florida. The efficiency increase in this coal-fired plant is significant because it makes up for the parasitic load generated by the addition of a flue gas desulfurization unit and a selective catalytic reduction system.


Commenting on these successful executions, Timothy Curran, Head of Alstom Power in the US said, Retrofits offer customers tangible economic and environmental benefits, as they allow them to generate more electricity with the same amount of fuel. They represent a cost effective way to generate additional performance from an existing resource. Alstoms retrofit solutions combine leading technology with superior execution to generate more value for our customers.


Alstom is the leader in the retrofit of steam turbines supplied by Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), serving approximately 40% of a market in which numerous companies compete. In the US, it has retrofitted 158 fossil steam turbine cylinders, 142 of which were on third party machines and more than 90% of nuclear steam turbine retrofits performed by Alstom were on turbines manufactured by other OEMs.

Alstoms capability to serve the retrofit market was further strengthened with the opening of its new manufacturing facility at Chattanooga, Tennessee earlier this year. The factory has the capacity to manufacture capital-intensive components for coal, nuclear and gas plants and is equipped with the largest rotor balancing facility in the world. Chattanooga complements Alstoms manufacturing facility at Morelia, Mexico. Both these factories together will primarily serve the needs of the North America market.

1 At the end of 2009 (Alstom/IEA)

Press contacts

Timothy S Brown Tel: +1 860-713-9530
e-mail: timothy.brown@power.alstom.com

Carsten Nemitz Tel. : +41 56 205 1883
e-mail : carsten.nemitz@power.alstom.com