MILAN, ITALY - June 4, 2008 : – Azienda Agricola 2G di Giuseppe and Paolo Gomiero, two commercial farmers and cattle breeders in Limena (PD), have selected an ecomaginationTM-certified Jenbacher gas engine from GE Energy to power the Baita del Latte farm's first biogas plant.

The power plant uses biogas created by the digestion of a wet mixture of animal waste, or slurry, as well as agricultural biomass materials such as corn and rye. By using the biogas for power generation in place of fossil fuels, the project is expected to result in the reduction of the equivalent of about 5,000 tons of CO2 per year, thus providing significant environmental benefits.

The new biogas project allows Gomiero to address two common farming challenges: obtaining energy at sustainable prices and properly disposing of agricultural and animal wastes like cow manure and chicken dung, which presents an ecological and regulatory challenge for farmers due to its high content of nitrates.

"This project is an excellent example of an advanced solution to an ecological issue," said Paolo Gomiero, who owns the Baita del Latte plant along with his two brothers, Rob erto and Lorenzo. "In fact, the EEC's Nitrates Directive1 provides for very restrictive regulations in terms of chicken dung disposal. Thus the biogas plant actively contributes to the correct use of such substances. The anaerobic digestion of organic substances optimizes the initial product by making it more stable and odorless. Moreover, the remaining substrate is useful as an excellent fertilizer - eliminating the use of chemical substances."

GE Energy supplied a Jenbacher type J320 GS cogeneration unit for this plant, which recently wentinto operation at the farmstead. The plant has an installed electric capacity of 1.06 megawatts (MW), with an efficiency of 40.8 percent. The power plant is equipped with a heat recovery system that utilizes the waste heat from the jacket water. The electricity produced is supplied to the Italian power distribution network, while thermal energy is recovered and used to power the biomass digestion process, the farm's housing facilities and cattle sheds.

The Jenbacher engine is fueled by biogas created from 20 m3 of cattle effluent and approximately 50 tons of biomass each day. By delivering the electricity generated by the biogas engine to the public grid, Baita del Latte is able to obtain "Green Certificates" provided by Italian legislation. These certificates are negotiable instruments that prove electricity is being produced using renewable energy sources.

"The project is rewarding in terms of its economic return," Paolo Gomiero added. "The plant is seen as a successful demonstration project. We expect many other farms will follow us because this territory in the Veneto region has been chronically troubled with energy demands that traditional sources, like fossil fuels, have not been able to fulfill."

"Public programs that support the exploitation of organic waste and require the increased contribution of renewable energy are leading to new opportunities that may be of interest to the farming world," said Mario Artoni, general manager of GE Energy's Jenbacher gas engine bu siness for Italy. "In Italy, legislation on the incentives for on-site electrical power from renewable sources has aroused great interest in biogas plants. Today, more than ever, the practical and economic answers to Italy's energy and environmental challenges can be found in initiatives like this one-especially if they produce the outcomes we expect."

GE Energy has already installed more than 800 Jenbacher gas engines in Italy, characterized by durability, reliability and the ability to combine high production density and an excellent cost/performance ratio with low levels of exhaust emissions. Thanks to these features, GE's Jenbacher systems represent technological excellence among gas engines, generators and cogeneration systems. Jenbacher gas engines operate on natural gas as well as a broad variety of waste gases.

About Jenbacher Gas Engines by GE Energy

GE Energy's Jenbacher gas engine business, based in Jenbach, Austria, is a leading manufacturer of gas-fueled reciprocating engines, packaged generator sets and cogeneration systems for power generation.

Jenbacher engines cover an output range of 0.25 to three MW and operate on natural gas or a variety of specialty fuels, including flare gas and coal mine gas or alternative fuels like biogas, landfill gas , wood gas, sewage gas and industrial waste gas. Patented combustion systems coupled with advanced engine and plant management systems enable customers to meet stringent international emission standards while offering high levels of efficiency, durability and reliability.

About GE Energy

GE Energy (www.ge.com/energy) is one of the world's leading suppliers of power generation and energy delivery technologies, with 2007 revenue of $22 billion. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, GE Energy works in all areas of the energy industry including coal, oil, natural gas and nuclear energy; renewable resources such as water, wind, solar and biogas; and other alternative fuels.

Numerous GE Energy products are certified under ecomagination, GE's corporate-wide initiative to aggressively bring to market new technologies that will help customers meet pressing environmental challenges. GE's Jenbacher biogas, landfill gas and coal mine methane engines have received ecomagination certification, underscoring the environmental and economic benefits offered from the utilization of generating energy from high methane content waste streams.

About GE Energy Europe

With more than 9,000 employees in Europe, GE has plants in France, Germany, Austria, Spain and Hungary. The European headquarters of GE Energy Europe are based in Belfort employing more than 1,800 employees. A center of excellence in its area, Belfort is the only producer of heavy duty gas turbines in France. The sites in Salzbergen, Germany and Noblejas, Spain are centers of excellence for new generation wind turbines, while one of the four GE Global Research Centers is based in Germany, near Munich. The Jenbacher plant in Austria is a leading manufacturer of gas-fueled reciprocating engines, packaged generator sets and cogeneration systems for power generation. In addition, there are several plants in numerous European countries producing spare elements and services, including Hungary, Italy and Great Britain. GE Energy Europe owns a University in Florence, Italy, training employees and one engineering center in Warsaw, Poland and also in Moscow, Russia.

About GE

GE is Imagination at Work-diversified technology, media and financial services company focused on solving some of the world's toughest problems. With products and services ranging from aircraft engines, power generation, water processing and security technology to medical imaging, business and consumer financing and media content, GE serves customers in more than 100 countries and employs more than 300,000 people worldwide. For more information, visit the company's Web site at http://www.ge.com.

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1 Directive 91/676/EEC, also known as the Nitrates Directive, was implemented by the European Economic Community in 1991 to protect the underground water threatened with the accumulation of nitrates due to excessive exploitation of farm land. The legislative and regulatory tools establish and identify the prohibited and vulnerable areas, the periods in which it is prohibited to use the land, the allowable quantity of breeding effluents deposited, the discipline of the agronomic utilization of the zootechnical effluents in non-vulnerable and vulnerable areas and the structural interventions in pig farming. In addition to the specific and binding legislation, the region has promoted the voluntary implementation of cultivation methods, including fertilization, with a lower environmental im pact by including them as actions in Measure 2.f of the Regional Plan for Rural Development. The region approved the list of municipalities and relative cadastral sheets for the purposes of the Nitrates Directives included within the boundaries of the vuln erable areas with Italian Administrative Determination no. 9162/2003.