State-of-the-Art M701JAC Gas Turbine Exceeds 8,000 Actual Operating Hours
-- Air-cooled JAC Series Establishes Industry Benchmark of Reliability for 50Hz Power Generation --

Tokyo, September 5, 2022 – Mitsubishi Power, a power solutions brand of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI), has achieved an accumulated 8,000 hours of actual operating hours (AOH) for its M701JAC gas turbine. The subject gas turbine unit was installed for gas turbine combined cycle (GTCC) power generation system operated as part of a joint venture between Thailand’s Gulf Energy Development Public Company Limited, one of the country’s largest independent power producers (IPP), and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. The 60Hz model M501JAC gas turbine previously achieved 8,000 AOH in June 2018, and with the 50Hz model M701JAC now having exceeded 8,000 AOH as well, the state-of-the-art air-cooled JAC (J Series Air Cooled) series has established an industry benchmark of reliability for both the 50Hz and 60Hz markets.

Further, a M501JAC model gas turbine utilized for a long-term demonstration operation begun in July 2020 at the T-Point 2 combined cycle power plant validation facility on the grounds of the Takasago Machinery Works in Hyogo Prefecture, has recently reproduced the result of more than 8,000 AOH. This achievement provides even more solid evidence of the reliability of JAC Series gas turbines.

The GTCC power plant project in Thailand is a joint venture between Gulf Energy Development Public Company Limited and Mitsui & Co., Ltd. to build and operate two large-scale power plants, one in Chonburi Province and one in Rayong Province, comprising eight M701JAC gas turbine units with a combined total output of 5,300 megawatts (MW). The first of these units to be delivered, which has now exceeded 8,000 AOH, commenced operations at the end of March 2021 the Chonburi Province plant, approximately 130 kilometer southeast of the capital city of Bangkok. This power station already has three M701JAC units in operation.

T-Point 2 is a state-of-the-art GTCC power generation validation facility including an M501JAC unit for 60Hz power generation and high-efficiency steam turbine, with total output of 566 MW. The facility conducts total plant optimization and verification in an actual grid-connected power plant to provide the technological backing for long-term, reliable operation. The long-term demonstration operation at T-Point 2 is managed by the Takasago TOMONI HUB Analytics and Performance Center, and incorporates many existing and newly developed digital applications included in the TOMONI_® Suite of Intelligent Solutions that make T-Point 2 the world’s smartest power plant. Recently validated TOMONI solutions include AI-based applications to autonomously optimize plant performance and operation as well as reliability assurance applications using advanced status visualization, historical trending, and predictive diagnostics. T-Point 2 is also a core facility for the Takasago Hydrogen Park currently under construction, and will be utilized for operational validation using hydrogen fuel and integration of emerging technologies for total energy management, including hydrogen fuel utilization, hydrogen production and energy storage.

Toshiyuki Hashi, MHI Senior Executive Fellow and Head of Energy Transition & Power Headquarters of Energy Systems, said regarding the achievement of this record, “We are extremely proud that the JAC Series gas turbines at these two plants have achieved both high reliability and efficiency, reaching 8,000 hours of operation. We believe that JAC Series gas turbines, which are able to stably provide clean energy with high efficiency through the use of hydrogen fuel, will play an important future role in realizing a carbon neutral society.”

JAC Series gas turbines utilize a high turbine inlet temperature of 1,650°C, providing a world-leading power generating efficiency of 64%, the highest level for a power plant. Since the commercial launch of the J Series gas turbines (which includes the JAC Series) in 2009, orders have steadily increased from customers in Japan and around the world, reaching a cumulative total of 92 units. Of these, 52 units are currently in commercial operation, with aggregate operating hours exceeding 1.7 million hours for the J Series as a whole.

Mitsubishi Power, building on this establishment of an industry benchmark of reliability with 8,000 AOH for both the M701JAC and M501JAC models, will further focus its efforts on promoting the widespread adoption of state-of-the-art JAC Series gas turbines, and contribute to lessening environmental loads amid a backdrop of securing the stable power generation that is essential to global economic development, and energy transition strategies.