Research, Development, and Technology Demonstration Program to Improve the Efficiency of Gas Turbines

The bill (H.R. 3029), introduced by Representative Paul Tonko, would create energy savings through better design and efficiency, and promote U.S. technology leadership.  The bill would establish a program to improve the efficiency of natural gas turbines, which are used in combined cycle power generation systems.  The bill would allocate $65 million per year from 2011 to 2014 for a competitive grant program to raise the efficiency of natural gas power plant turbines to 65%.  Currently, the most efficient turbines operate at 60% efficiency.  A one-percentage point improvement in efficiency applied to existing turbines would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 4.4 million tons per year and provide fuel savings of more than $1 billion per year.  Making smart investments in technologies, such as gas turbines, will help bring these advances to market in a way that will help wean us off imported fossil fuels and spur job retention and creation.