Two GE 7HA.03 gas turbines are now operating at Florida Power & Light’s (FPL) Dania Beach Clean Energy Center near Fort Lauderdale, Florida, US.

It’s the first time the 7HA.03 turbines – the largest 60Hz turbines and most efficient in GE’s fleet – are commercially operable worldwide.

GE said the new air-cooled turbines are part of a plant modernisation effort that is resulting in a 70% emissions reduction. Dania Beach Clean Energy Center is now generating up to approximately 1,260MW.

GE secured FPL as a customer for the project back in 2019, around the time it launched the 7HA.03 turbine. The utility planned to spend $880 million on the project, we reported at the time.

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The 7HA.03 pulls much of its design from decades of overall HA experience. However, it does include the first adoption of GE’s DLN 2.6e combustion system on its 60Hz gas turbine line. Another innovation is a larger titanium R1 blade to enable greater volume of airflow and output.

The 430MW model has a 75MW-per-minute ramp rate, 64% net combined-cycle efficiency and can turn down to 30% load while staying within emissions compliance, according to GE.

The company said this was validated at GE’s Test Stand 7 in Greenville, South Carolina, in parallel with the installation of the gas turbines at Dania Beach. GE said it validated the turbine control system settings and provided the adjustments to system software for improved turbine operability and reliability.

FPL said it believes that the turbines – at Dania Beach and elsewhere – may be fueled by hydrogen with some modifications. The utility is currently developing a pilot project to test the use of green hydrogen to replace a portion of the natural gas at its power plant in Okeechobee County, Florida – which also uses GE turbines.

GE said its 7HA.03 gas turbine has the capability to burn up to 50% by volume of hydrogen when blended with natural gas.

FPL’s Dania Beach property has been the site of power generation for 90 years. It hosted the first power plant in FPL’s system, beginning operations in 1927. The plant was modernized in the 1950s and again in the 1990s, according to FPL.

Originally published by Kevin Clark on power-eng.com

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