Tractebel

Tractebel is an international company, with Belgian roots, providing worldwide life-cycle consultancy and engineering in power, nuclear, gas, industry and infrastructure for the GDF SUEZ Group – within GDF SUEZ Energy Services - as well as for national and international institutions and customers in public or private markets.

GDF SUEZ Energy Services is one of the key business lines of ENGIE.

Tractebel traces its beginning to Gaz Belge, a holding company founded in 1862 to provide gas lighting and heating - and three other pioneering enterprises specialised in trams, railways and electricity: Société Générale de Chemins de Fer Economiques (1880), Compagnie Mutuelle de Tramways and Société Générale Belge d'Entreprises Electriques (both in 1895). By 1901, all four companies had set up design offices and were carrying out investment projects and managing the resulting operations. These included power supply and public transport in Belgium, the first electric trams in Damascus - Syria and Odessa - Ukraine, railways in Egypt and power stations in Argentina.

In 1929, three of the companies merged to form the engineering consultancy Electrobel, and went on to construct several “new” Belgian power plants. The fourth, 'Mutuelle des Tramways' changed its name to 'Traction & Electricité' and later to 'Tractionel'. These two entities established their core business with projects such as the extension and upgrade of the Belgian power grid after the Second World War and the installation of Belgium’s nuclear power plants from 1969. More infrastructures; pipelines, dams, hydropower stations and complex buildings were also commissioned – locally and abroad. In 1977, Coyne et Bellier (France) famous for their hydroelectric dams joined the Electrobel group.

Finally after decades of collaboration on many projects Electrobel and Tractionel merged in 1986. The name Tractebel was born – along with a new engineering division: Tractebel Engineering grew, establishing its own divisions and a worldwide network of affiliates; acquiring Cheming (Czech Republic) in 1992 and founding Citec (Poland) in 1993. The group’s Flemish subsidiaries merged under the name of Technum in 1995. Trapec (Romania) joined in 1997, followed Leme (Brazil) in 2000 – the same year that Tractebel Engineering Italy and TECPL in India were set up.