OREANDA-NEWS. March 19, 2012. JSC RusHydro (ticker symbol: MICEX-RTS, LSE: HYDR; OTCQX: RSHYY) announces that a new hydropower unit was commissioned at the Company's Sayano-Shushenskaya hydropower plant (HPP), adding another 640 MW to 5 hydro-units in operation with a total capacity of 3200 MW. The commissioning ceremony was attended by the Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, the Head of the Government of the Republic of Khakassia Viktor Zimin and Yevgeny Dod, Chairman of RusHydro's Management Board.

A full cycle of commissioning tests, under the direct supervision of Power Machines (the turbines manufacturer), was carried out prior to commissioning.

Hydropower unit No. 7 is the second brand new unit commissioned at the HPP. Hydropower unit No. 1 was launched earlier, in December 2011. Another 8 new hydro-power units are scheduled to be installed as part the 2nd phase of the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP rehabilitation project (the 4 old hydro-units restored and put into operation in 2010 will also be replaced by new ones). The rehabilitation schedule for the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP calls for commissioning 3 hydro-units per year until 2014. Eventually, the plant will be fully equipped with brand new up-to-date equipment with enhanced performance characteristics that meet all safety and reliability requirements.

Power Machines and RusHydro entered into a contract to produce basic power equipment to restore the Sayano-Shushenskaya HPP in November 2009. Under terms of the contract, Power Machines will produce 10 hydropower turbines, nine 640 MW hydropower generators and six excitation systems (one new generator and 4 excitation systems have been produced and installed at hydropower units launched after the completion of renovation repair work in 2010).

The useful life of the new units has been extended to 40 years and maximum efficiency now reaches 96.6%. They also have improved energyand cavitation features. The turbines will be fitted with a more efficient process protection system, which will automatically shut down the unit in case of any inadmissible deviations from controlled parameters.