Wärtsilä's successful O&M programme marke...

Wärtsilä Corporation, Trade & Technical press release, 23 October
2008

The Khulna Power Company plant in Bangladesh and the Caracolito Power
Plant in Colombia may be far apart geographically. However, these two
plants have a common bond in that they have both recently celebrated
10 years of successful operations and management by Wärtsilä
Corporation, a leading provider of operations and management services
for power plants worldwide.

The Caracolito Plant in Colombia, which belongs to one of the world's
largest cement producers, contracted and installed in 1998 a 25 MW
self-generation power plant. An operations and maintenance (O&M)
agreement was also signed with Wärtsilä and the power plant started
operation on September 30th, 1998. During the subsequent ten years
there have been notable achievements, including the implementation of
ISO 9000 in 1999, ISO 14000 in 2000, and Wärtsilä's 'Quality Work of
the Year' award in March 2001. The power plant maintains consistently
high standards of efficiency that are reflected in the low cost per
MW-hour. To date the plant's five Wärtsilä 18V34SG generating sets
have produced 1,500,000 MWh.

The 110 MW Khulna Power Plant is mounted on two barges next to the
river Bhairab in the district of Khulna, Bangladesh. It is powered by
19 Wärtsilä 18V32LN generating sets operating on heavy fuel oil. The
power plant began commercial operations in October 1998 under a
15-year O&M agreement between Khulna Power Company Ltd and Wärtsilä.
Since that time the plant's availability has been notably high,
averaging between 98% and 99% for the period 1998-2007. It was
selected as a model power plant for the region under an Asian
Development Bank programme entitled "Oil Spill Impact and Response
Management". To date the plant's nineteen Wärtsilä 18V32LN generating
sets have produced more than 6,000,000 MWh.

In comments related to the 10th anniversary celebrations of these two
operations, Tage Blomberg, Group Vice President, Services said:
"Wärtsilä's successful ten-year record of operation and maintenance
at these two power plants is clear evidence of our competence in this
field. We look forward to continued success in efficiently operating
these plants, and the many other Wärtsilä-operated plants around the
world, for many years to come."

Wärtsilä's O&M agreement programme is designed to cover all aspects
of operating and managing an installation, including O&M planning,
day-to-day operation, scheduled and unscheduled maintenance,
administration, human resources and training, technical support,
logistics management and security. This comprehensive programme
enables the plant owner to focus on the company's core business,
whilst Wärtsilä ensures optimal plant performance throughout the
complete operational cycle, from receiving fuel to supplying energy.
Wärtsilä operates and maintains more than 130 installations across
the globe.

Link to pictures
Caption 1: The 110 MW Khulna Power Plant is mounted on two barges and
is powered by 19 Wärtsilä 18V32LN generating sets operating on heavy
fuel oil.
Caption 2: The Caracolito Plant in Colombia, which belongs to one of
the world's largest cement producers, has been operated by Wärtsilä
since 1998.


For further information, please contact:

Maria Nystrand
Public Relations Manager, Power Plants
Wärtsilä Corporation
Direct tel:       [phone]
E-mail:           [e-mail]



Wärtsilä Corporation in brief:

Wärtsilä enhances the business of its customers by providing them
with complete lifecycle power solutions. When creating better and
environmentally compatible technologies, Wärtsilä focuses on the
marine and energy markets with products and solutions as well as
services. Through innovative products and services, Wärtsilä sets out
to be the most valued business partner of all its customers. This is
achieved by the dedication of more than 17,000 professionals manning
160 Wärtsilä locations in 70 countries around the world. Wärtsilä is
listed on the Nordic Exchange in Helsinki, Finland.
www.wartsila.com


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