OREANDA-NEWS. JSC RusHydro (ticker symbol: MICEX-RTS, LSE: HYDR; OTCQX: RSHYY) announces that it has signed agreements expanding cooperation with Alstom in relation to their joint venture (JV) AlstomRusHydroEnergy and reconstruction and modernization of the Cascade of Kubanskiye HPPs at St. Petersburg Economic Forum.

The first of the signed documents is cooperation agreement on strategic business development of AlstomRusHydroEnergy. The document was signed by Evgeny Dod, CEO of RusHydro, and Patrick Kron, CEO of Alstom Group. The agreement aims at development and strengthening working relationship in terms of hydropower energy through expansion of operating activity of AlstomRusHydroEnergy enterprise in Ufa, including maintenance services.

AlstomRusHydroEnergy is a joint venture established by RusHydro and Alstom in 2011. RusHydro's share in the share capital is 50% plus RUR 1 share, the share of Alstom is 50% minus RUR 1. Alstom is responsible for operational management of the JV, implementation of the best practices and technical know-how, and guarantees post-commissioning support. The enterprise was founded in May, 2012. It will manufacture main power generation equipment for small (up to 25 MW), mid-sized hydropower plants (up to 100 MW) and pump storage plants (up to 150 MW), as well as auxiliary equipment.

The companies will consider potential development of cooperation in terms of innovations, research and technical works.

The partners will jointly seek new markets and expand sales from the JV. At the same time sales to RusHydro's hydropower plants undergoing rehabilitation and modernization will be a priority business of the enterprise. Alstom plans to include AlstomRusHydroEnergy into its integrated power generation system Alstom Hydro, that will allow to relocate part of production from the other units of Alstom Group to JV.

The parties are also planning to expand the scope of maintenance services, offered by the JV. The sphere of planned cooperation includes equipment inspection and diagnosis at existing power plants, supply of spare parts, retooling, repair and modernization.

The second document signed was the agreement on the principles and timeline of restructuring of General Contract for rehabilitation and modernization of the Cascade of Kubanskiye HPPs dating back to 2011.

The project covers complex modernization of eight hydro-power plants and one pumped-storage plant, comprising the cascade. Alstom will manufacture equipment and will supervise installation and pre-launch testing. The key component is introduction of automated centralized control of the cascade from the town of Nevinnomyssk.

The signed document structures the project and specifies timeline and responsibilities of the parties. It also determines the scope of participation of ESCO UES in the Project. ESCO UES is a full-profile engineering company specializing in construction and modernization energy facilities, including “turnkey” projects.

Alstom is a global leader in the world of power generation, power transmission and rail infrastructure and sets the benchmark for innovative and environmentally friendly technologies. Alstom builds the fastest train and the highest capacity automated metro in the world, provides turnkey integrated power plant solutions and associated services for a wide variety of energy sources, including hydro, nuclear, gas, coal and wind, and it offers a wide range of solutions for power transmission, with a focus on smart grids. The Group employs 93,000 people in around 100 countries. It had sales of over €20 billion and booked close to €24 billion in orders in 2012/13.