Rewrites throughout to add details from conference call
By Mrinalika Roy and Tanay Dhumal
Jan 22 (Reuters) - GE Vernova GEV.N on Wednesday reported a rise in fourth-quarter profit as growing need for reliable power boosted demand for its gas turbines as well as grid equipment and services.
Orders for the company's gas turbines doubled in 2024 and were tied to electric load growth in the United States, partly driven by demand from data centers.
Meanwhile, greater investments in grid strengthening benefited GE Vernova's electrification segment.
Overall, its quarterly net income more than doubled to $484 million.
Gas and grid equipment backlog is expected to grow substantially in 2025 at better margins, the company said.
"The world is shifting, relying more on electrons and megawatts. This is changing energy landscape, driving increased demand for our equipment and services," CEO Scott Strazik said in a post-earnings call.
However, orders for the company's wind segment, which provides turbines, blades and services, were down about 41% during the quarter, hurting overall revenue that fell short of estimates.
The company was cautious in its forecast for the wind segment, saying it expects organic revenue to be down mid-single digits.
"We remain cautious on the timing of an onshore order inflection in North America as customers continue to navigate growing interconnection queues and higher interest rates," a company executive said.
The company expects core profit at its wind segment to improve in the second half of the year.
MORE NUCLEAR OPPORTUNITY
Sixty-five nuclear plants currently run on GE Vernova's technology in the United States.
The company is in discussions to add more megawatts to existing plants.
"The activity of customer interest not just in the U.S., but also outside the U.S. is only strengthening," a senior company executive said.
"Last week, we also announced a joint effort with multiple large U.S. utilities to accelerate the deployment of its small modular nuclear reactor."
(Reporting by Tanay Dhumal in Bengaluru; Editing by Shreya Biswas)
((Tanay.Dhumal@thomsonreuters.com; Twitter: https://twitter.com/TanayDhumal;))