GE Hydro Wins $47 Million Contract for Five-Year, Seven-Unit Refurbishment Project in Virginia.

Energy Editors/Business Editors

ATLANTA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 10, 2003

GE Hydro has received a contract of more than $47 million from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for a five-year, seven-unit refurbishment of the John H. Kerr Powerhouse in Boydton, Virginia.

The project will increase the plant output by more than 70 megawatts.

The Kerr powerhouse is located on the Kerr Reservoir, a Roanoke River project in southern Virginia near the border with North Carolina. Completed in early 1953, the power plant supplies electricity to Dominion and Progress Energy.

GE Hydro will refurbish or upgrade all seven vertical Francis turbines and generators at the Kerr powerhouse. The turbine runner for unit 1 will be refurbished to ensure continued reliable service with an output of nearly 13 megawatts. The remaining units, 2-7, will have new turbine runners installed to increase the output of each of those machines from approximately 33.5 megawatts to more than 45 megawatts.

GE also will supply seven new sets of stator coils and windings. Ratings for the existing generators are 13,333 kva for unit 1 and 35,555 kva for units 2-7. Following the refurbishment, the rating for unit 1 will remain the same while the ratings for the other six units will increase to 52,000 kva.

The scope of the GE Hydro contract also includes turbine model testing, electrical balance-of-plant equipment, and seven new governors to be provided by GE Global Control Systems.

As a key part of the contract, a turbine aeration system will be installed to increase the dissolved oxygen (DO) content in the water being discharged from the turbines. The increased dissolved oxygen will benefit the living organisms downstream of the power plant by increasing the amount of oxygen available in the waterway to sustain life.

"As with other environmental solutions, DO technology is becoming an important consideration in the refurbishment of hydroelectric plants. Going forward, we expect that more U.S projects will require DO systems," said Robert Balletti, GE Hydro U.S. Regional Sales Manager.

The first refurbished unit is scheduled to resume commercial service by the end of 2004, with all seven units to be commissioned by November of 2007.

GE Hydro, a unit of GE Power Systems, is a world leader in the supply of hydro turbines, generators and related electro-technical equipment for the hydropower production industry. Capabilities include complete water-to-wire solutions for new hydroelectric plants and refurbishment and service for existing plants.

About GE Power Systems

GE Power Systems (www.gepower.com) is one of the world's leading suppliers of power generation technology, energy services and management systems with 2002 revenues of nearly $23 billion. Based in Atlanta, GA, GE Power Systems provides equipment, services and management solutions across the power generation, oil and gas, distributed power and energy rental industries.