OREANDA-NEWS. Hydropower Unit No. 2 has been replaced at Rybinskaya HPP (RusHydro). New equipment manufactured by Power Machines will allow increasing the plant's capacity by 10 MW. The work has been undertaken within the framework of a comprehensive renovation program held by RusHydro.

In December 2013 the hydropower unit passed individual tests. The functioning of its separate components and systems was checked and no-load trial runs were carried out. The commissioning and start-up were finished with comprehensive trial run during which the unit had been successfully operated under load in the network for 72 hours. Based on the comprehensive testing results, the acceptance committee approved the hydropower unit for commercial operation.

“The old Hydropower unit No. 2 at Rybinskaya HPP was put in operation back in the beginning of 1942. The new one is produced using state-of-the-art technologies and materials, it has high technical and economic performance and is fully compliant with current environmental requirements,” said Andrey Derezhkov, Director of the Cascade of Verkhnevolzhye HPPs (RusHydro OJSC branch).

The replacement of outdated and obsolete equipment at the HPPs of the Volga-Kama cascade will continue within the framework of the comprehensive renovation program. The remaining three hydropower units at Rybinskaya HPP and one hydropower unit at Uglichskaya HPP are to be replaced by 2020. This will enable to enhance the reliability and operational safety, use water resources in a more efficient way and reduce operating costs. When the renovation process is completed, the total installed capacity of the HPPs in the cascade will rise by 50 MW.