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viable and sustainable way of developing the country’s hydro potential. As part of the project’s “social contract” in the Local Community Development Plan, the plant will provide electrification for the local communities of Alen Komo, Andock Foula, Makabane and Madouacka. It will also set up a local development fund for small local community projects in healthcare, education and culture. The Kinguélé Aval dam will be constructed in the buffer zone of the Monts de Cristal National Park, while the reservoir will cover about 2% of the national park’s surface. The project will provide financial and logistical support for a de facto extension of the national park by enabling protection of approximately 2000ha of adjoining land.
Mott MacDonald carried out technical due diligence on the hydro plant which included a review of the plant design including aspects such as geology and geotechnical, hydrology resources and energy yield forecasts, as well as a review of the broader project commercial basis. In addition, Mott MacDonald undertook detailed due diligence on all environmental and social aspects, including review of proposed project environmental and social management plans. Due to potential project impact, biodiversity aspects were reviewed in great detail, including several versions of the project’s strategies for managing biodiversity including the project Biodiversity Action Plan, Offset Feasibility Study, and protections for the wide range of fauna and flora including great apes, located within the park.
Norway aventron and Aberdeen Standard Investments to merge small hydro portfolios aventron AG and Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI) are merging their small scale hydropower portfolios to create Norway’s third largest small-scale hydro operator with annual production capacity of 460GWh aventron and ASI’s combined portfolio will focus on the development, construction, production and distribution of renewable energy through hydropower as well as wind power in Norway. The combined portfolio comprises 41 small scale hydropower plants (including one plant under construction) as well as an operational wind farm and a further wind farm under construction. Combined annual production capacity is expected to reach c.460GWh once all projects are fully operational. With aventron’s assets mostly located in south Norway and ASI’s portfolio primarily based in the north of the country, the two portfolios are highly complementary. The merger provides geographical diversity, operational synergy potential and further de- risks the business by enhancing the long term competitive position of the joint company, a
statement from the firms said. The merger has been achieved through a contribution in kind, with aventron becoming the majority shareholder of the joint entity, aventron Norway AS. ASI through its first infrastructure fund, SL Capital Infrastructure I LP, will hold a substantial minority position with governance rights.
Slovenia Solar construction starts on Zlatoličje hydroelectric plant Dravske elektrarne Maribor, part of the HSE Group, has begun construction of segment five of the Zlatolicje solar power plant on the left bank of the Zlatolicje hydroelectric outlet channel in Solvenia. Segment five will feature nearly six thousand
photovoltaic modules, with a total rated power of almost 2.7MWp and a planned annual production of approximately 3000MWh. Given the slope of the drainage channel at the hydroelectric project, which in some places exceeds 30 degrees, the construction will require considerable challenge and caution from the contractor, HTZ Velenje, particularly due to the proximity of the canal, whose water flow is up to 550 cubic meters per second. A special feature of the power plant will be the container design of the central inverter with a transformer station and a medium voltage switchyard.
Segment five of the Zlatolicje solar power
plant is part of a larger emerging solar power plant with a total nominal capacity of about 30MWp and an estimated annual production of 37,000MWh, to be built on the supply and discharge channels of Zlatolicje and Formin hydropower plants over the next few years.
Russia RusHydro and Sibur in hydro supply deal RusHydro has signed an agreement with Sibur Holding to supply hydroelectricity produced by the Nizhne-Bureyskaya hydropower project to Amur Gas Chemical Complex, which is currently under construction. Amur Gas Chemical Complex is the largest facility in Russia for production of polyethylene and polypropylene currently under construction by SIBUR and Sinopec. Its annual output stands at 2.3 mn tons of polyethylene and 400 thousand tons of polypropylene. The agreement guarantees electricity supply
to the complex in the Far East Federal District for 20 years and is mutually beneficial to both parties as RusHydro now has additional stable demand for electricity while Sibur does not have to construct its own power generation facility.
“Reduction of adverse effect on climate from
production is one of our strategic priorities,” commented Dmitry Konov, Chairman of the Management Board of SIBUR Holding. “The
6 | October 2021 |
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Amur region has an enormous potential of renewable energy sources, which not only satisfies the environmental requirements of our project but also reduces the carbon footprint of our manufactured goods. We will strive for our production to become one of the most environmentally friendly in the country.”
China Three Gorges project operates at full capacity China Three Gorges Corporation (CTG) has announced that the Three Gorges Project – the world’s largest hydropower project – connected all of its 34 power units to the grid on August 30, achieving full-load operation for the first time in 2021 with a total output of 22.5GW.
Operating at full-load capacity, the Three
Gorges Project is able to generate 0.54 TWh electricity a day, which is enough to power 5.4 million households for one month on assumption that the monthly average electricity consumption of a family of three is 100 KWh, said Zou Yi, vice president of Three Gorges Project under China Yangtze Power Co., Ltd., CTG’s listed arm. Due to sustained rainfall in the upper reaches
of the Yangtze River recently, the inflow volume of the Three Gorges Reservoir exceeded 22,000 cubic meters per second and embraced three floods of over 40,000 cubic meters per second.
In addition to flood control, Three Gorges Reservoir regulated the discharge volume in lock step with the power units at full capacity, managing to control the water level at the reservoir to increase gradually. The facilities at the complex, including the Three Gorges Dam and the Three Gorges ship locks operated safely during the operation.
Indonesia World Bank approves loan for Indonesia’s first pumped storage plant
A US$380 million loan from the World Bank will help develop the 1040MW Upper Cisokan pumped storage hydropower plant in Indonesia – the first project of its kind in the country. The project aims to improve power generation capacity during peak demand, while supporting the country’s energy transition and decarbonization goals. Over 80% of the power generated for the Java- Bali grid, which supplies electricity to 70% of the country’s population, comes from fossil fuels. A key measure to support Indonesia’s decarbonization agenda is the development of energy storage to enable integration of renewable energy into the grid. Pumped storage hydropower plays a crucial role in this approach. The financing will support the construction
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