GE’s Power Services signed and executed an agreement with Suez-Tractebel Operation & Maintenance Oman (Stomo) for stator rewinding services, high-speed balancing of the rotor as well as digital solutions for a generator at the Barka II Power and Desalination Plant.

Stomo provides operations and maintenance (O&M) services at the strategically important Barka II facility, owned by SMN Barka Power Company, which is located about 50 km away from Muscat and can deliver up to 120,000 cu m per day of potable water as well as 678 megawatts (MW) of electrical power to Oman.

“GE’s deep understanding of the industry, technological capabilities and advanced suite of digital industrial solutions positioned them as a trusted partner of choice,” said Jurgen De Vyt, chief executive officer, SMN Power Holding Company. “The services were delivered as per internationally recognised standards through proactive, on-the-ground support by GE’s highly qualified team of engineers, helping us increase our competitiveness.”

The contract is a first-of-its-kind for GE in the Middle East, covering services for a generator manufactured by other original equipment manufacturers (OEM). It highlights GE’s expanded capabilities to service OEM products following the acquisition of Alstom’s energy portfolio in 2015, which helped bring onboard deep domain expertise in generator life extension and repairs and digital services.

The Ansaldo WY21Z-092 generator stator rewinding–which is expected to extend the asset’s life for approximately 20 years–was conducted on-site, and GE leveraged its regional strengths by undertaking inspection services and high-speed balancing for the rotor at its Global Repair Solutions Jebel Ali Service Centre in the UAE, which has two dedicated facilities for undertaking the repair and maintenance of generators and gas turbines. 

Established in 2005, the Global Repair Solutions Jebel Ali Service Centre is the only one of its kind in the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan region that is equipped with a high-speed balancing facility. This allows any type of rotor repairs and field rewinds requiring high-speed testing, reducing the risk of failure during commissioning on-site and helping to improve the availability and reliability of the power plant. GE also provided a generator health monitoring suite allowing improved asset management.

Joseph J Anis, president and CEO of GE’s Power Services business in the Middle East and Africa said:“Thanks to our expertise in repairing parts across numerous OEM brands, and the presence in the region of the Global Repair Solutions Jebel Ali Service Centre with a dedicated generator workshop and mobile on-site resources, GE is delivering high-quality capabilities to service any type of generator and provide fast maintenance support across broader scopes of work.”