Re Contract

ABB Ltd
28 May 2004





ABB drives help develop giant Norwegian gas field

$22 million order supports plan to boost gas exports by 20 percent in 2007



Zurich, Switzerland, May 28, 2004 - ABB, the leading power and automation
technology group, said today it has received a $22 million order from GE Oil and
Gas - Nuovo Pignone to provide electrical drive systems for an onshore gas
processing plant that will support the Ormen Lange gas field in Norway.



'ABB's automation products and advanced drives technology will help develop one
of the largest gas fields on the Norwegian continental shelf,' said Dinesh
Paliwal, head of ABB's Automation Technologies division. 'This significant order
expands and supports our long-term relationships with the region's key
operators, and leverages our expertise in deployment of energy-saving products
and systems'



The order includes two Series ACS 6000 variable speed drive systems for the
recompressors, and three LCI (load commutated inverter) adjustable speed
synchronous motor drive systems for the export compressors. ABB's systems will
be installed at the Nyhamna onshore gas processing plant in Norway.  ABB will
also integrate power transformers, converters with filters, and motors to
complete the advanced drive systems.



The contract's scope includes design, engineering, documentation, equipment
testing, back-to-back testing and commissioning of the  complete drives systems.



Natural gas from the Ormen Lange field will be processed and compressed at
Nyhamna, then transported through a 1,200 kilometer-long pipeline to Easington
in the U.K. ABB drives will be used to control and optimize speed of the export
gas compressor and recompressor trains.



With estimated reserves of 397 billion cubic meters, the Ormen Lange field will
begin exports to the U.K. in 2007. Norsk Hydro is developing the field, which is
located about 100 kilometers off the Norwegian coast and is slated to represent
about 20 percent of Norway's gas exports, and 20 percent of the U.K. gas market
demand.



ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable
utility and industry customers to improve performance while lowering
environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100
countries and employs about 113,000 people.


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