The system supplied by alstom is the first electronic ring gate control system with hydraulic synchronisation – meaning that in an emergency, the system can close by itself, cutting the flow of water to stop the turbine.
Alstom says the system is extremely reliable, offering easy operation and maintenance, high precision and outstanding safety compared with traditional ring gate systems. The process of model and product development, design, manufacture, assembly and testing took just eight and a half months and is the result of effective collaboration between Tianjin alstom-hydro Co. Ltd (TAH) and the Alstom research and development centre in Grenoble, France.
The Ahai Dam, owned by Yunnan Jinsha River Hydropower Co. Ltd, is currently under construction and comprises 5×400MW Francis hydro turbine generator units, for which the five turbines are being supplied by Alstom under a contract worth RMB 885M (approximately EUR 88.5M). The first unit will be commissioned in spring 2012.
With a diameter of 10m, a height of 2.6m and weighing 110 tonnes, the Ahai ring gate is the biggest one in the world.
“The successful application of this revolutionary ring gate control system and positive test results will ensure the continued successful delivery of the Ahai project to our customer,” said Richard Yeung, Head of Alstom Power China.
Alstom is involved in major hydro power projects in China including Three Gorges Dam (14×700 MW units), Guanyinyan (3×600 MW units), Liyuan (4×600 MW units) and Xianjiaba (4×800 MW units). The 800 MW turbines designed, engineered and manufactured by Alstom for Xianjiaba are the world’s largest hydro turbines ever manufactured to date.
Tianjin Alstom Hydro is Alstom’s largest hydro power manufacturing base. To further expand TAH’s production capacity and meet growing market demands, Alstom inaugurated a new hydro power manufacturing site in November 2010, capable of delivering up to 30 turbine and generator units per year with outputs ranging from 20MW to 1000MW.
