Alstom successfully completes Chamera III hydro power plant

Alstom has successfully achieved the synchronization and full load of the three 77 MW units of the Chamera III hydro power plant project on June 28 2012. Alstom has completed commissioning of this project in 3 weeks much ahead of schedule time of 3 months and the first synchronization coincided with same day when water was made available for the first day, after dam reached the required level on-site.

Previously, Alstom had successfully completed the spinning of 3 Francis vertical turbines, recording a rated speed of 333 rotations per minute in a record time of less than 10 hours, thus setting a new benchmark for the spinning of turbines within the Indian hydro sector.
With a total of 233.6 MW, the 3 units have already been handed over officially to NHPC (National Hydroelectric Power Corporation); who has also declared the start of the commercial operation.

Situated on the river Ravi in the Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh, Chamera III is the first project executed on turnkey basis by Alstom from his Indian Unit of Vadodara which has reached commercial operation. Complete turbine, generator, main inlet valve, governing, control & protection systems were designed, manufactured and supplied from Vadodara. In a similar way, electrical and mechanical balance of plant was also designed there. The power generated from this project provides additional power capacity to the Northern Grid to meet the nations developing demand, and thus feeding Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Chandigarh, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan.

Following the successful completion of this project, Alain Spohr Unit Managing Director, Alstom Hydro India said, Hydroelectric power is essential to achieve the ambitious goal of the Indian government to expand the Twelth Plan to 90000 MW. Alstom worked very closely with the customer and we are pleased to announce the successful completion of the Chamera III project, which has further enhanced our reputation in India and the Middle East. 

The Chamera stage-III project, a run-of-the-river scheme, will generate 1108.17 million units annually during a 90% dependable year. The project is an integral part of the governments initiative to move towards green and CO2-free energy usage. This project allows to upgrade road infrastructures within the region and to improve not only the electricity supply, but also importantly the water supply to the inhabitants surrounding the project area. On top of providing additional stability to the Northern India Grid, the Chamera III Hydro project Dam will also feed water to Chamera I & II Projects during a lean period.

Press Contacts
Rachana Panda (Alstom India) - rachana.panda@power.alstom.com
Stéphanie Roux (Alstom Renewable Power) - stephanie.roux@power.alstom.com