GEA Group, an international technology group that focuses especially on process engineering and equipment, has lifted October orders by 30% year-on-year in its core business. All divisions contributed to this rise. Growth in November has so far been equally good. Major new orders in the Energy Technology division proved to be the highlights.

The company has received the turnkey order for the complete design, manufacture, supply and erection of the Air Cooled Condensers for the new 6 x 800 MW Medupi fossil fuelled power station at Lephalale in South Africa from Alstom Power Systems. The end customer for the new project is Eskom, South Africa’s leading power producer. In China, GEA has received the order to plan and supply the Heller Indirect Dry Cooling System for the 2 x 660MW Bao-Ji Power Station. This is the second order for a Heller Cooling system in China within the last 2 years. The Energy Technology division alone has consequently raised its cumulative orders as of the end of November to around EUR 940 million (previous year period: EUR 886 million). This means that in 2007 the division will achieve the record level of orders of around EUR 1 billion it reached in 2006, reveals the company’s press release.

"The business with cooling technology for power plants will continue at a high level given the strong catch-up demand in Europe, and continuing growth in worldwide demand for energy in emerging markets. Demand for machinery and equipment for refining foodstuffs is also growing in a very gratifying way," commented Jürg Oleas, Chairman of the Executive Board of GEA Group.