RusHydro has increased the installed capacity of the Nizhny Novgorod hydroelectric power plant by 7.5MW to 545.5MW following the replacement of hydroelectric unit No. 4.
The replacement was completed in the first quarter of 2026. Comprehensive testing confirmed that the unit’s capacity increased from 65MW to 72.5MW.
Unit No. 4 is the third of the plant’s eight generating units to be upgraded. Work has already begun on replacing unit No. 7. RusHydro said the phased replacement of all hydroelectric units will increase the plant’s total capacity to 580MW.
Alongside the generating equipment upgrades, the company has modernised the plant’s power distribution system and several supporting systems. The work includes the replacement of 6.3/0.4 kV auxiliary transformers, equipment at 6 kV, 110 kV and 220 kV switchyards, hydroelectric unit maintenance gates and spillway dam gates.
RusHydro has also upgraded the compressor system, drainage system, fire suppression system and lighting system. The floodplain dam drainage system has been reconstructed, while reconstruction of the road crossing over the plant’s concrete structures is ongoing.
Nizhny Novgorod is the fourth stage of the Volga Cascade of Hydroelectric Power Plants. In addition to generating electricity for Russia’s unified power grid, the facility supports navigation on the Volga River and helps manage peak electricity demand.
The upgrade forms part of RusHydro’s modernization programme for its hydroelectric generating assets. The company plans to replace around half of its key equipment fleet, including turbines, generators and transformers, across its hydroelectric and pumped-storage power plants.
RusHydro said the programme takes a facility-wide approach, combining the replacement or reconstruction of primary equipment with upgrades to auxiliary equipment, plant-wide systems and hydraulic structures.
Under the programme, the installed capacity of RusHydro’s hydroelectric power plants has increased by 719 MW. The company has replaced or modernized 153 hydroelectric turbines, 167 generators, 114 power transformers and more than 10,000 units of auxiliary equipment.
