Infrastructure
Work Underway for Europe’s Largest Hydroelectric Plant
The Dniester power plant is located in Chrnivtsi, Ukraine.
Construction is underway on the Dniester Pumped-Storage Power Plant (PSPP) in Ukraine, a project that will gift Europe its largest and most powerful hydroelectric facility.
On completion in 2028, the Dniester Hydroelectric Power Station will include seven hydraulic units that will jointly generate up to 2268MW of electricity.
The main civil works for the Dniester PSPP commenced in 1988, and the first and the second units of the power plant started operations in 2010 and 2014, respectively.
The third unit of the facility was brought online in August 2016, while the fourth unit is expected to commence operations later this year.
Construction of the fifth unit is currently underway.
The Dniester Hydroelectric Power Station is located about 20km from Sokyryany City, in the Chrnivtsi province of Ukraine. It sits on the right bank of the centre of the Dniester River, near Ukraine’s border with Moldova.
Although the total cost of the project has not been made public, construction of the fourth unit of the Dniester Hydroelectric Power Station has been set at about €223 million.
Project details
Each unit will be fitted with a radial-axial pump-turbine unit with a capacity to generate 324MW while operating in turbine mode and consume 421MW of energy while operating in pump mode.
The powerhouse measures roughly 288m-long, 27m- wide, and 21.3m high. It is divided into underground and surface sections.
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The facility also includes an upper reservoir, a water intake system, seven pressure water mains, drainage pipes, a water release system, an offtake system, and a lower reservoir.
The power generated from the Dniester PSPP will be evacuated into the national grid through a 330kV power transmission line.
Companies involved
Ukrhydroenergo is undertaking the project through a consortium known as the Research Production Association (RPA) Ukrgidroenergobud, which includes Dnipro-Spetsgidroenergomontazhe, Enpaselectro, Kyivmetrobud, SHDSU, and Intergidrobud.
Ukrhydroproekt was engaged in the engineering and design services for the project, while Kyiv Energy Construction Co. was hired for electrical installation and commissioning work.
Kyivmetrobud was involved in the construction of the hydraulic structures in the second phase of the project development.
Hydro generator motor
Electrotyazhmash produced and supplied the generator along with the stator of the hydro-generator motor for unit four, while Zaporizhtransformator provided the transformers for the project.
Enpaselectro has been involved in the commissioning works of the auxiliary systems, while Hydrotechproject provided the design and engineering supervision services for firefighting systems, heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and water supply.
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Promix Company was involved in the manufacture and supply of generating switches and current-limiting reactors for units two and three.
Energomashspetsstal was subcontracted by Electrotyazhmash to produce and supply 135 blanks for the installation of the generator of unit four of the project in July 2017.
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