First French Poweo Production Power Plant Fires Up

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Poweo Production, a newcomer to the French power market, fired up its first power plant this week at Pont-sur-Sambre in northern France. The 412-megawatt (MW) combined-cycle gas-turbine (CCGT) power plant is the first fully gas-powered combined-cycle plant owned and operated by a company other than Electricite de France SA (EPA:EDF) (Paris), the French national utility.

Poweo Production is a subsidiary and part owned by Poweo S.A. (EPA:ALPWO) (Paris), Verbund (WBAG:VER) (Vienna, Austria), investment fund Ecofin and Charles Beigbeder, Chairman of Poweo Production.

The plant was designed and produced by Siemens (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany), which will also oversee ongoing maintenance. The plant is equipped with a single-shaft SGTS-4000 F gas turbine and an SSTS-3000 steam turbine coupled with one heat recovery steam generator.

"Thanks to this innovative combined cycle technology, which has demonstrated its efficiency worldwide, carbon emissions will be two to three times lower than for an equivalent conventional fossil fuel power plant," Poweo said in a statement. "Through this project, Poweo is playing its part in modernising and renewing France's thermal production facilities."

The French power market was deregulated in July 2007, but EDF still controls the vast majority of the power generation and transmission business in the country. Although companies like Poweo and GDF Suez have a small foothold, they will find it difficult to compete on price with the power produced from EDF's 58 nuclear reactors spread across 19 sites and where the state still demands low consumer pricing. A recent report, however, from a government expert committee on energy has suggested that all rival suppliers should be allowed the right to access base-load electricity at a regulated price.

Commenting on the so-called "Champsaur Report," Poweo said: "The Champsaur committee report pushes for better competition on the French energy market. We welcome the conclusions of the committee headed by Paul Champsaur, and the terms of the report are very promising for the competition in the French energy market. The report's conclusions must be implemented without delay."

In addition to Pont-sur-Sambre, Poweo has been given the green light to build another 440-MW CCGT plant in Toul in the Meurthe-et-Moselle region of northeastern France. The project is worth an estimated $440 million. Poweo is also conducting preliminary studies for another plant in Blaringhem in Pas-de-Calais. For more information, see related September 29, 2008, news article - Tender for EPC Contract for Combined-Cycle Power Station in France Open until November.

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