2026 Gas Turbine and Power Generation Conference Guide

Every year I put together a list of the conferences, user groups, and industry events that matter to people in gas turbine power generation. Whether you're an owner/operator, a vendor, an investor, or someone trying to understand where this industry is headed, these are the rooms where the real conversations happen.

This is the 2026 edition. Some of these events have already taken place earlier this year, but I'm including them for the full picture. If you're planning your travel for the rest of the year, the second half is packed.

A few notes: dates marked "TBD" were unconfirmed at the time of publishing. User group meetings (the model-specific ones like 7FA, 501F/G, etc.) are where the most candid technical conversations happen and are typically restricted to owner/operators. I've organized everything roughly by quarter to make it easier to scan.

Q1: January through March

APPA Joint Action Conference January 11-13 | Destin, FL | Henderson Beach Resort The American Public Power Association's annual joint action gathering. Good event for public power utilities and the companies that serve them.

EPRI TGUG (Turbine Generator Users Group) January 12-16 | Wesley Chapel, FL EPRI's turbine-generator user group meeting. Deep technical content focused on turbine and generator equipment issues across the fleet.

HRST Academy January 13-15 | Hilton Head, SC | Sonesta Resort Training sessions from HRST, one of the top HRSG (heat recovery steam generator) engineering firms. Useful for plant engineers looking to sharpen their knowledge on HRSG operation and maintenance.

PowerGen International January 20-22 | San Antonio, TX | Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center powergen.com The biggest power generation trade show and conference in North America. Over 7,500 attendees, 500+ exhibitors, and a nine-track conference program covering everything from gas turbine technology to grid modernization and renewables. If you attend one major industry event per year, this is probably it.

PSM Asset Manager Meeting January 26-29 | Jupiter, FL | Wyndham PSM (Power Systems Mfg) hosts their asset manager customers for technical updates and fleet discussions.

ProEnergy User Conference January 26-28 | Phoenix, AZ | Arizona Grand Resort & Spa ProEnergy's annual user conference, focused on their FT8 and aeroderivative turbine services customer base.

MD&A Turbine/Generator Repair Training January 27-29 | St. Louis, MO Training event from Mechanical Dynamics & Analysis (MD&A), one of the major independent turbine repair and field service companies.

EPIC (Electric Power Industry Conference) January 27-29 | Bismarck, ND | Bismarck Event Center Regional generation conference, well-attended by cooperatives and smaller utilities.

EPRI Heat Rate Improvement Conference February 2-6 | Charlotte, NC This is a key one for plant operators and engineers focused on getting more efficiency out of existing combined cycle plants. Heat rate improvement is where real money gets saved.

Distributech February 2-5 | San Diego, CA Major transmission and distribution conference. Not generation-focused, but relevant if you're tracking how the grid side of the business is evolving to handle new load from data centers and electrification.

501F/G Users Group February 15-20 | Norfolk, VA | Hilton Norfolk One of the larger frame-specific user groups, covering the GE 501F and 501G fleet. These machines are workhorses in the North American fleet, so this meeting draws strong attendance.

InterSolar & Energy Storage North America February 18-20 | San Diego, CA Solar and battery storage focused, but increasingly relevant to gas turbine operators as hybrid configurations and storage integration become standard in new project development.

AEIC (Association of Edison Illuminating Companies) February 24-26 | Scottsdale, AZ | Hilton Scottsdale Resort & Villas Utility engineering conference with a long history. Good networking event for the investor-owned utility crowd.

NAES O&M Meeting March 2-5 | Orlando, FL NAES is one of the largest independent power plant operations and maintenance companies in North America. Their annual meeting brings together plant managers and operators from across their portfolio.

NRECA PowerXchange March 6-11 | Nashville, TN The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association's annual meeting and trade show. Major event for the cooperative utility sector, which represents over 900 electric cooperatives serving 42 million Americans.

NRECA TechAdvantage March 8-11 | Nashville, TN Runs alongside PowerXchange with a focus on technology and engineering for cooperative utilities.

ESIG Spring Technical Conference March 16-19 | Tucson, AZ | Loews Ventana Canyon Resort The Energy Systems Integration Group covers grid reliability, variable generation integration, and the technical challenges of running a power system with an evolving generation mix.

FT8 Users Group March 17-19 | Charlotte, NC | EPRI Campus User group for the Pratt & Whitney FT8 aeroderivative gas turbine. Hosted at EPRI's campus in Charlotte. ft8users.com

FT4 Users Group March 17-19 | Charlotte, NC | EPRI Campus Runs alongside the FT8 meeting. Covers the older FT4 aero fleet, which is still in service at a number of facilities. ft4users.com

CERAWeek by S&P Global March 23-27 | Houston, TX | Hilton Americas-Houston ceraweek.com The most important energy strategy conference in the world. Over 10,000 participants, 1,600+ C-suite executives, 84 ministers and government officials from 89 countries. This year's theme was "Convergence and Competition: Energy, Technology and Geopolitics." If you're in the financial, policy, or executive side of energy, CERAWeek is where the big-picture conversations happen.

Q2: April through June

WTUI (Western Turbine Users) April 7-10 | Long Beach, CA | Long Beach Convention Center wtui.com The world's largest independent organization of aeroderivative gas turbine owner/operators, now in its 35th year. Technical breakout sessions cover the GE LM2500, LM5000, LM6000, and LMS100 product lines. Switched to a Tuesday-Friday schedule this year. If you operate aero engines, this is essential.

V94.2 / SGT5-2000E / AE94.2 Users Group April 20-23 | Helsinki, Finland European user group meeting for Siemens Energy's V94.2 platform (also designated SGT5-2000E). International crowd, technically focused.

NRECA 2026 Legislative Conference April 26-29 | Washington, DC The cooperative sector's annual DC lobbying and legislative conference. Focused on federal energy policy, regulation, and the political landscape affecting rural utilities.

CC Jensen Conference May 5-7 | Barcelona, Spain CC Jensen makes oil filtration and conditioning systems for gas turbines and other industrial equipment. Their annual conference covers oil management best practices and new technology.

SGT-800 Users Group May 11-13 | Stuttgart, Germany User meeting for the Siemens Energy SGT-800 industrial gas turbine, widely deployed in combined heat and power and smaller combined cycle applications across Europe.

7FA Users Group May 18-22 | Houston, TX | The Woodlands Waterway Marriott powerusers.org One of the biggest frame-specific user groups. The GE 7FA is one of the most widely deployed heavy-duty gas turbines in North America, so this meeting draws a large and engaged crowd. Five days of deep technical content.

HRSG Forum Europe May 19-21 | Prato, Italy powerusers.org European edition of the HRSG Forum, focused on heat recovery steam generator design, operation, and maintenance issues. Run by Power Users Group.

Enlit Africa May 19-21 | Cape Town, South Africa Pan-African energy event covering power generation, transmission, and distribution across the continent.

Emerson Exchange May 19-21 | Dubai, UAE Emerson's annual user conference covering their Ovation control system and automation solutions for power plants.

AREGC (Association of Rural Electric Generating Cooperatives) June 1-4 | Branson, MO Annual meeting for cooperatives that own and operate power generation assets. Good peer-to-peer event for co-op generation managers.

NRECA GMAG Meeting June 4-5 | Branson, MO Generation and Marketing Advisory Group meeting, runs right after AREGC in the same location.

AOG (Alstom Owners Group) June 2026 (exact dates TBD) | Houston, TX aogusers.com User group for operators of legacy Alstom (now GE Vernova) gas turbines, including the GT24 and GT26 fleet.

501D5 Users Group June 2-4 | Location TBD User group for the Westinghouse/Siemens 501D5 fleet.

LTUG (Legacy Turbine Users Group) June 22-25 | Oklahoma City, OK | Omni Oklahoma City Hotel powerusers.org Covers the older GE frame fleet: 7EA, 6B, and Frame 5 machines. These turbines are aging but still represent a significant portion of installed capacity, and their operators face unique parts supply and maintenance challenges.

Electrification Conference June 23-25 | Baltimore, MD | Baltimore Convention Center IEEE conference focused on the growing electrification trend across transportation, buildings, and industry.

Q3: July through September

Emerson Ovation Users Group July 2026 (exact dates TBD) | Pittsburgh, PA | Westin Convention Hotel Focused specifically on Emerson's Ovation distributed control system, which runs a large share of the gas-fired power plant fleet in North America.

ACC (Air-Cooled Condenser Users Group) July 14-16 | Nashville, TN acc-usersgroup.org Covers the design, operation, and maintenance of air-cooled condensers in combined cycle plants. Niche but important for plants in water-constrained regions.

HRSG Forum USA July 20-23 | Houston, TX | The Woodlands Waterway Marriott powerusers.org The US edition of the HRSG Forum. Consistently one of the best technical conferences for anyone involved in HRSG operation, maintenance, and engineering. Strong vendor participation and candid user presentations.

HA Users Group August 3-6 | Fort Lauderdale, FL powerusers.org Covers GE Vernova's HA-class (high-efficiency air-cooled) gas turbines, the newest and most advanced machines in the GE fleet. This is where operators of the latest technology share early operating experience.

Power Users Combined Annual Conferences (CCUG, GUG, STUG, PPCUG, LCPG) August 24-27 | San Antonio, TX | Marriott Rivercenter on the Riverwalk powerusers.org Five user groups under one roof: Combined Cycle Users Group, Generator Users Group, Steam Turbine Users Group, Power Plant Controls Users Group, and the Low Carbon Peer Group. This is the largest combined user group event in the industry, with shared meals, vendor fairs, and parallel technical sessions. If you can only attend one user group conference, this gives you the most coverage.

CTOTF Fall Conference August 30 - September 3 | San Antonio, TX | Grand Hyatt San Antonio River Walk ctotf.org The Combustion Turbine Operations Technical Forum has been running since 1975, making it the longest-running gas turbine user group in the industry. User-driven roundtables, OEM updates, and deep technical sessions across multiple turbine platforms. San Antonio gets busy with turbine people in late August.

NAES Plant Managers Meeting September 2026 (exact dates TBD) | Seattle, WA Annual gathering of NAES plant managers from across their fleet.

ME RoTIC (Middle East Rotating Technology & Innovation Conference) September 2026 (exact dates TBD) | Dubai, UAE roticsymposium.com Rotating equipment conference covering gas turbines, compressors, and related machinery for the Middle East market.

CEATI Asset Management & Innovation September 15-16 | St. Louis, MO CEATI International's conference on power generation asset management and innovation. Good for utility asset managers looking at lifecycle optimization.

PCIC (Petroleum & Chemical Industry Conference) September 21-24 | Philadelphia, PA IEEE conference focused on electrical systems and equipment for the petroleum and chemical industries. Relevant overlap with power generation.

HRSG Forum South America September 22-24 | São Paulo, Brazil powerusers.org South American edition of the HRSG Forum. Growing event as the Latin American combined cycle fleet expands.

Enlit Asia September 22-24 | Jakarta, Indonesia Pan-Asian energy conference covering generation, transmission, and distribution across the Asia-Pacific region.

Q4: October through December

V94.3A / SGT5-4000F / AE94.3A Users Group October 5-8 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | Hilton User group for the Siemens Energy V94.3A platform, one of the most widely deployed large gas turbines in Europe and the Middle East.

NRECA GMAG Meeting (Fall) October 5-8 | Greenville, SC Fall edition of the Generation and Marketing Advisory Group meeting.

Wärtsilä Users Group October 12-15 | New Orleans, LA | Crowne Plaza French Quarter powerusers.org User group for Wärtsilä reciprocating engine and gas turbine operators. Wärtsilä has gained market share in flexible peaking and grid support applications.

6FA Users Group October 19-22 | Bangkok, Thailand | Royal Orchid Sheraton International user group meeting for the GE 6FA gas turbine fleet. The Bangkok location reflects the large installed base of these machines across Southeast Asia.

9FA Users Group October 19-22 | Bangkok, Thailand | Royal Orchid Sheraton Runs alongside the 6FA meeting. The 9FA is one of GE's most successful F-class heavy-duty gas turbines globally.

9HA Users Group October 19-22 | Bangkok, Thailand | Royal Orchid Sheraton Also co-located in Bangkok. Covers the GE 9HA, the 50 Hz version of GE's latest HA-class technology.

AEIC (Fall Meeting) October 22-24 | Ojai, CA Second AEIC gathering of the year, typically a smaller and more intimate session.

Australasian Boiler and HRSG Users Conference November 2026 (exact dates TBD) | Brisbane, Australia Covers HRSG and boiler issues for the Australia and New Zealand market.

EPRI Advanced Class November 2026 (exact dates TBD) | Charlotte, NC EPRI's advanced gas turbine technology conference.

GTEN (Gas Turbine Engineering Network) November 2-4 | Banff, AB, Canada Focused on gas turbine engineering for the Canadian market, with strong participation from pipeline and oil sands operators.

ADIPEC November 2-5 | Abu Dhabi, UAE adipec.com One of the world's largest energy conferences, covering oil, gas, and increasingly power generation and energy transition. Massive event with a strong Middle Eastern and international audience.

COP31 November 9-20 | Antalya, Turkey The UN Climate Change Conference. Broader than power generation, but the policy decisions made here shape the regulatory and investment environment for gas turbines and the energy transition for years to come.

RE+ (Solar/BESS) November 16-19 | Las Vegas, NV North America's largest renewable energy and storage event. Worth tracking if you're involved in hybrid gas-solar-storage project development.

CEATI T&D Conference November 17-18 | Denver, CO CEATI International's transmission and distribution focused event.

Additional User Groups (dates/locations TBD for 2026): Several frame-specific user groups had not confirmed their 2026 details at the time of publishing. These include the CEATI TGIG, GT13, 501G, SGT-235 (RB211), V Users, and M501J/JAC groups. Check with the respective organizers for updates.

If I missed one or if you have updates on any TBD dates, drop me a note at thomas.freeman@gasturbinecoach.com. I'll keep this updated through the year.

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