GE Vernova Completes Installation of Two High Efficiency Upgrades at InterGen’s 800 MW Combined Cycle Coryton Power Plant in the UK

GE Vernova has completed a major outage and the installation of two of its High Efficiency (HE) upgrades at InterGen’s 800 MW combined cycle Coryton Power Plant, located 30 miles east of London on the River Thames, with the upgrades resulting in plant performance exceeding expectations.

GE Vernova’s HE upgrade utilizes technology breakthroughs across gas turbine, compressor and combustor. These advancements enabled Coryton Power Plant to deliver up to additional 85 MW, surpassing the expected 77 MW, and improved unit efficiency by 2.46%.

The upgrades aim to extend maintenance intervals and the modernization is projected to lead to a reduction of approximately 67,500 tons equivalent of carbon emissions each year, aligning with the government’s objectives to lower the national carbon footprint by requiring less fuel to produce the same amount of power. The outage conducted at Coryton power plant included borescope inspections on two generators and steam turbines, valve inspections, and electrical testing of all components.

GE Vernova’s Coryton project team included over 300 experts from Project Management, Engineering, Parts, Sourcing, One Field Services (OFS), Logistics, and Manufacturing from across the globe, which collaborated closely with InterGen as a unified team. The team completed more than 122,000 man-hours of work with a perfect safety record, achieving zero recordable EHS incidents in this service and upgrade project.

With the current project, eleven GT26 units upgraded with the HE are in operation in 2025.  GE Vernova has invested in the development of the GT26 HE upgrade, which was introduced in 2019.

The technology combines the best from both GE Vernova’s F- and H-Class fleets with additive manufactured parts and innovations in aerodynamics, material science, and combustion dynamics and provides good efficiency, output, and maintenance interval extensions.

“This project underscores our continued commitment to keeping our customers’ gas turbine fleets competitive in the UK’s energy landscape,” said Joseph Anis, President & CEO for GE Vernova’s Gas Power business in Europe, Middle East & Africa. “GE Vernova GT26 gas turbines are able to operate on a variety of fuels, including blends of hydrogen and natural gas, to offer InterGen pathways to reduce carbon emissions in the future.”