Repair campaign at Kapshagai HPP

On January 22 of this year, the repair campaign of the Kapshagai hydroelectric power station officially started. A significant amount of work is planned.

The repair of hydraulic unit No. 1 was the first to begin. With the help of specialized contracting organizations Universtroy LLP, under the guidance and control of specialists from the Kapshagai HPP, a major overhaul of the hydraulic unit was successfully carried out, including disassembly, instrumental examinations and determination of the residual life.

“We can’t say that the work went smoothly. During the repair, additional volumes were identified for re-wedging the grooves of the stator winding of the hydrogenerator, for eliminating damage and cracks on the metal cladding and restoring the lined concrete base in the turbine impeller chamber,” said Bakdaulet Ustenov, Managing Director of the Kapshagai HPP. — Through joint efforts, all defects were eliminated. The hydraulic unit was turned on under load at 23:52 on May 22, 2020. It has completed 48 hours of supervised operation – the repair is officially completed.

The very next day, May 23, hydraulic unit No. 3 was put out for scheduled repairs. The maintenance personnel of the electrical machine shop of the Kapshagai HPP are carrying out routine repairs of the main components of the hydraulic unit, the T-3 power transformer, the 22T auxiliary transformer and auxiliary equipment.
There are still planned routine repairs ahead of hydraulic units No. 2, No. 4, transformers T-2 and T-4, auxiliary and general station equipment, as well as buildings and hydraulic structures of the station.

Reference:  hydraulic turbine PL2-50-642-V-650 st. No. 1, put into operation in 1970. During its operation, the hydraulic unit underwent scheduled current and major repairs in volumes and on time in accordance with current regulatory and technical documents.
In 2012, a major overhaul of the hydraulic unit was carried out, including disassembly, instrumental examinations and determination of the residual life. The service life has been extended until 2020.