Doosan Enerbility is accelerating its overseas energy exports toward the end of the year. Following the signing on the 16th of a core nuclear equipment supply contract for a Czech nuclear power plant worth about KRW 5.64 trillion (contract value), the company has now concluded an additional gas turbine supply contract in the United States. This latest gas turbine supply deal was reached approximately two months after the first export contract (two units) in October. By pioneering the overseas market for power generation gas turbines this year and securing additional volumes, Doosan Enerbility has re-emerged as one of the few major gas turbine companies in the global market. With a main contract for the small modular reactor (SMR, Small Modular Reactor) business also likely next year, the company appears to be stepping up as a global integrated energy company.

Doosan Enerbility announced through a regulatory filing on the 17th that it had signed an additional supply contract with a U.S. Big Tech company for three 380MW-class gas turbines (model name DGT6-300H.S2). This is an additional supply contract following the initial order for two units, bringing total orders this year alone to five units. The turbines will be supplied for power generation at an AI data center being built by the U.S. Big Tech company, with plans to supply one unit (including generator) in 2027 and complete the remaining two units in 2028.

Doosan Enerbility is the fifth company in the world to secure gas turbine technology. In 2019, it succeeded in localizing a large gas turbine for power generation through industry-academia-research cooperation in Korea. It subsequently completed 15,000 hours of verification at the Gimpo combined heat and power plant and has also achieved orders for six units in the domestic market. Based on domestic verification and orders, overseas exports have been in full swing since this year. Including the latest contract volume, Doosan Enerbility will be able to record overseas export performance for a total of five units.

Doosan Enerbility cited verified performance, short delivery times, and service support based on its local subsidiary as key drivers for its rapid order expansion. The power generation gas turbine business is a field where demand for maintenance after product supply is high, so the role of Doosan Enerbility’s Houston-based U.S. subsidiary DTS (Doosan Turbomachinery Services) is expected to grow in this project.

Son Seung-woo, head of Doosan Enerbility’s Power Service BG, said, “With the conclusion of an additional supply contract following the first export, Doosan has firmly established itself as a global player in gas turbines,” adding, “Based on this achievement, the company will strengthen its presence in the rapidly growing North American market and actively respond to increasing demand.”
Although the exact contract amount has not been confirmed, considering the order status in the gas turbine industry, the pure equipment and auxiliary facility price for one 380MW-class large gas turbine for power generation is estimated at around KRW 100 billion–150 billion. While the price per unit is not extremely high, the core of the gas turbine business from a profitability perspective lies more in maintenance than in equipment supply. Given the highly competitive nature of order-based industries, margins on equipment supply tend to be relatively low, whereas margins on maintenance, which is carried out on an exclusive basis, can be higher. The industry estimates that, based on a gas turbine life cycle of 20–30 years, maintenance alone can generate more than three times the initial equipment supply price. In particular, with electricity demand surging due to the construction of AI data centers, a “supplier’s market” environment has formed in which even equipment supply prices can be set favorably. Many evaluate that the gas turbine market has entered a supercycle.

On top of this, the so-called Big Three, which have monopolized about 90% of the global gas turbine market, have hit the limit of their order capacity as they respond to rapidly increasing power demand. The global Big Three in large gas turbines for power generation are considered to be General Electric (GE) of the United States, Siemens of Germany, and Mitsubishi Power of Japan. These three companies are reportedly unable to accept new orders until around 2028–2029. They are said to have a large volume of orders from the Middle East region. This enhances the visibility of Doosan Enerbility, which began pioneering the overseas gas turbine market this year.

Big Tech companies promoting AI data center construction are focusing on natural gas-fired gas turbines for power generation, which offer advantages in construction time, supply stability, operating hours, and efficiency. Unlike nuclear or coal-fired power, which take time to start up, gas turbines for power generation can supply electricity quickly and allow for adjustment of output, enabling efficient operation. They are viewed as the most ideal power source for data centers that require an immediate and stable power supply.

Doosan Enerbility’s gas turbine production capacity at its Changwon plant is known to be five to six units per year. The company aims to secure annual production capacity of eight units by next year and 12 units per year by 2028. A simple sum of existing order volumes (six domestic units, plus two and three overseas units) suggests that orders have already exceeded current annual production capacity; however, since the domestic volume is scheduled to be supplied in installments of 1.5–2 units per year over three to four years, and considering capacity expansion plans, analysts see room for additional orders beyond this new contract. With the Big Three overseas players unable to take on new orders due to exploding demand, many expect Doosan Enerbility to establish itself in the global gas turbine market for power generation by leveraging short delivery times and available order capacity.

An industry official analyzed, “The global market for gas turbines for power generation is around 100–120 units per year, and once Doosan Enerbility completes its capacity expansion after entering the market at the right time, it is expected to easily secure a double-digit global market share.”

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