OREANDA-NEWS. On April 02, 2007 RAO "UES of Russia" has released a progress report on the implementation of the Investment Programme by the RAO UES energy companies in March 2007, reported the press-centre of  RAO "UES of Russia". On 15 March 2007, a new cogeneration steam turbine of 115 MW was commissioned at the Yaroslavskaya CHPP-2 of OAO "TGC-2". As a result, the station's electric capacity grew to 325 MW from 210 MW, while the heat capacity rose to 1,185 Gcal/h from 1,005 Gcal/h. The new capacity at the Yaroslavskaya CHPP-2 will help meet the existing and future demand for heat in the city of Yaroslavl, which due to the growing residential development and construction of public and business facilities.


On 19 March, hydropower unit No.11 of 24 MW was put into operation after a complete overhaul at the Kamskaya HPP , which is part of OAO "HydroWGC". The refurbishment work was carried out to improve the operational safety and reliability of the hydropower unit.  On 5 March 2007, OAO "Moscow United Electricity Distribution Company" put into operation the Vstrecha substation in the city of Aprelevka in Moscow Region. The new substation has modern equipment and a remote operation control system, which will help cover the energy shortages in experienced by customers in the Naro-Fominsk district of the Moscow Region. The substation is equipped with two 250 MVA transformers with excess capacity of 120 MW. The Vstrecha substation will increase the possibility for the company to connect new customers to the distribution grids, and will significantly reduce the load on the Western Power Grids, which are the most energy intensive branch of OAO "Moscow United Electricity Distribution Company".


On 26 March, the West Siberia Transmission Grids branch of OAO "UES FGC" completed the first phase of construction of the 220 kV line "Uryevskaya-Progress" to the 550 kV Trachukovskaya Substation. This transmission line will improve the electricity supply to the Uryevsko-Pokachevsky District in the Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Okrug and increase the reliability of electricity supply to the oil fields of OOO LUKOil-West Siberia". In March, the Central branch of OAO "UES FGC" started construction of two transmission lines. The first one, the 95-km 220 kW transmission line "Ivanovskaya TPP - Nero" will transport the electricity generated by the combined-cycle units under construction at the Ivanovskaya TPP to the Yaroslavl Region's energy system, and increase the reliability of electricity supply in the region. he second one, 355-km 550 kW transmission line "Frolovskaya -Shakhty" will transport 1,000 MW of electricity from the Balakovskaya NPP to the energy system of the Southern Federal Okrug. These measures will help improve the reliability of electricity supply in the cities of Rostov-na-Donu, Shakhty, Taganrog, and some other cities. This line is part of a major project to construct a 443-km 500 kV transmission line "Frolovskaya -Shakhty -Rostovskaya" with the Rostovskaya substation.


In March, the RAO UES distribution grid companies began construction of a substation and a overhead transmission line. On 20 March, OAO "Komienergo" started building a 110/10 kV Vylgort substation in the Syktyvdinsky District in the Komi Republic. The substation will meet the growing demand for electricity in Syktyvkar, the capital city of the Komi Republic.  In early March, OAO "Yantarenergo" started construction of a 110 kV "Severnaya Substation -Pionersk" transmission line. The line will increase the network throughput capacity and help transport electricity to the Zemlandsky peninsula, a rapidly developing resort and industrial area in the Kaliningrad Region. Moreover, last month, distribution grid companies completed modernization of three 110 kV substations and started modernization of over twenty 110 kV substations.