Gas-fired power plants fuel the energy transition

The energy demand is rising. Growing economies, electrification and digitalization are driving the need for more power. At the same time, however, the world needs to respond to climate change. While renewable energy is increasing worldwide, there are still challenges in ensuring affordable, reliable, and sustainable power around the clock. This is where gas-fired power plants, usually operated as natural gas power plants, come in as a key energy transition strategy. 

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Already today, gas-fired power plants generate 23 percent of the world’s electricity, providing essential services for the global energy transition. They help replace coal and oil power, with new gas-fired power plants reducing CO2 emissions by up to 65 percent compared to existing coal plants and up to 60 percent compared to oil plants. Whether as peaker plants operating when there is high demand or as combined-cycle power plants (CCPPs) that add a steam turbine to generate up to 50 percent more electricity, gas-fired power plants step in on days with little or no sun or wind, producing much-needed residual load. They also stabilize the grid with their rotating masses, bringing ancillary services and resilience to the grid while supporting the expansion of solar and wind power. Moreover, gas-fired power plants can be fully decarbonized using sustainable fuels like hydrogen or carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS). In short, gas turbines don’t just build a bridge to a decarbonized future – they are part of it.

There are several key reasons why natural gas power plants push the energy transition forward. Here are the three most important: Gas-fired power plants enable the coal phase-out, they stabilize grids for further renewable energy expansion, and they come with the potential to be fully decarbonized themselves.

One of the most effective, fast and cheap ways to reduce CO2 emissions in an economy is to replace coal or oil power with highly efficient natural gas power plants. When displacing an older coal plant, a new natural gas power plant can reduce CO2 emissions by between 60 and 65 percent. This is because natural gas has a lower carbon content than coal (between 45 and 50 percent lower) and today’s CCPPs have a much higher efficiency – 64 percent compared to around 40 percent in the case of older coal-fired power plants. Similar gains are made by replacing older oil-fired power plants: A new CCPP, for example, can reduce CO2 emissions by between 40 and 60 percent, depending on the efficiency of the oil-fired plant being replaced.  

What’s more, gas-fired power generation also offers greater operational flexibility. Natural gas plants can ramp up and down more quickly than coal plants, making them an ideal complement to intermittent renewable energy sources like wind and solar. 

As a technology leader in gas turbines, we are the partner of choice for both greenfield power plants and the conversion of existing coal-fired power plants into highly efficient CCPPs. This approach not only reduces CO2 emissions by up to 65 percent, it also reduces capital expenditure (Capex) by up to 30 percent. 

Since 2010, the switch from coal to gas has already saved around 500 million tons of CO2. This is equivalent to putting an extra 200 million electric vehicles on the road in the same period. 

Yes, expanding wind and solar power reduces generation costs and CO2 emissions, but it also comes with two major challenges. They are not available 24/7. And they do not provide grid stability.  

When there is no wind or sun, natural gas power plants can provide dispatchable power. While demand-side management (DSM) and energy storage solutions such as batteries or pumped hydropower can also reduce residual load demands, they usually only work for a matter of hours. Gas turbines are crucial to covering residual loads for longer periods of time. And eventually gas turbines running on green hydrogen produced from surplus renewable energy will enable a closed loop for deep decarbonization of electricity production. 

Traditionally, the stability and resilience of our power grids comes from conventional power plants with synchronous generators that supply indispensable grid ancillary services, like inertia, voltage control and provision of short-circuit power. In most cases, renewable energy cannot provide these services, but the rotating masses of turbine generator sets can, adding rotating inertia, stabilizing power grid voltage levels with reactive power, and strengthening the system with short-circuit power. As more large coal-fired power plants are retired, gas-fired plants will need to provide these ancillary grid services.  

With an optional synchronous condenser mode, generators can remain connected to the grid year-round, even if the gas or steam turbine (in a CCPP) isn’t providing active power. A flywheel can also be added to increase inertia. The more inertia these rotating masses give to the grid, the more renewables can be connected, pushing the boundaries of renewable energy penetration.  

While natural gas-fired power plants are a cleaner, better choice than coal plants in terms of emissions, they still run on fossil fuels. This is the case for now, but the industry is setting the stage for a decarbonized future. This can be done either through the use of sustainable fuels or through carbon capture and storage (CCS).  

For example, green hydrogen produced from renewable energy offers huge potential to decarbonize the power sector. And other forms of sustainable hydrogen, classified by color, such as blue, turquoise or pink hydrogen, to indicate production methods, can help decarbonize residual power with gas turbines. Already today, we make turbines capable of operating on hydrogen as well as hydrogen-ready power plants that are pre-equipped for a later retrofit to 100 percent hydrogen. Other sustainable fuels that could be used in the future include biofuels produced from organic matter or hydrogen derivatives like ammonia or methanol. 

Alternatively, CCS is increasingly recognized as a method that can help electricity production reach close to net zero. CCS can be paired with gas turbines as well as coal and biomass power plants to remove CO2 emissions from flue gas. With strategic partnerships, we are driving the development of CCS and CCUS technologies to intercept greenhouse gases where they are generated. 

Local conditions will ultimately determine which decarbonization technology is the most suitable and economical for a given project.  

Our customers operate an existing infrastructure of around 7,400 large gas and steam turbine units – and our fleet continues to grow and evolve. We have best-in-class gas turbines and are technology leaders with our HL-class, F-class, and SGT-800 turbines. With our solutions for gas-fired power, we’re actively steering a path toward a decarbonized future.