Zaramagskaya HPP head: height above sea level, photo, location, connection diagram

North Ossetia is rich in rough mountain rivers. These rivers have enormous potential in hydropower. The expected potential of the rivers of Ossetia is 5 billion kWh / year. Nevertheless, to the present day, North Ossetia is an energy-deficient region, and its electrification has not been completed.

The idea to build hydroelectric power stations in this area arose in 1976. Then the construction of the Zaramagh hydroelectric power station on the Ardon cascade began here.

general information

Construction of the hydroelectric power plant continued for many years. In the 90 years, construction work stopped funding. In 2009, the head Zaramagskaya HPP was finally launched.

Its location was not chosen by chance. The river on which the hydropower station is located is called Ardon. The name Ardon is translated into Russian as a "riotous river". It originates in the glaciers of the Greater Caucasus.

Below the outlet of the river from the Tuala depression for a period of 16 thousand meters, the elevations of the Ardon channel reach 700 meters. Because of such features of the riverbed, the connection scheme of the Zaramagskaya HPP is a derivational one.

In total there are three main schemes for creating the pressure of HPP water:

1) Dam - when the head is created with the help of a dam.

2) Derivational - when the water pressure is created by derivation in the form of a tunnel or a channel for water.

3) Plotno-derivatsionnaya - when the pressure of water is formed with the help of dams and derivations.

Moreover, the dam is present at hydroelectric stations built according to any of these schemes.

The derivation scheme is most preferable for all hydroelectric power stations where the river flows under a large slope.

The launch of the station has strengthened the hope that one day North Ossetia will become non-volatile. Now Zaramagskaya HPP is one of the youngest industrial hydropower plants in Russia.

Start the headend

The head Zaramagskaya HPP was run modestly. According to local tradition, the start was blessed by a veteran of energy, the oldest worker of the station. He offered a prayer and brought offerings to God. As an offering, olibakhs are used here - these are local pies with barley beer.

Scheme and principle of operation of the headend

The head station is needed in order to use the dam pressure created by the dam. It extinguishes it and feeds it into the derivation tunnel. The tunnel is non-pressure, its length is 14 thousand meters. After the tunnel, the water enters the turbines of Zaramagskaya HPP-1. The water pipe has an altitude difference of 630 meters.

Dam

The dam is located near the very exit of the river from the Tuval depression. It is bulk, from pebbles and soil. The length of the structure is 300 meters, and the height is 39 meters.

At the heart of the dam is the anti-filtration core. Made a core of loam. The fact that the massive mass of the dam itself is of enormous size and still has some mobility ensures the reliability of the entire structure.

The Republic of North Ossetia is in a zone of high seismic hazard. Here, there are possible earthquakes with a magnitude of 8-9 on the Richter scale. For conventional hydroelectric power stations, such tremors could cause serious danger. Zaramagskaya HPP is designed in such a way that its dam can safely withstand earth tremors by force of 11.25 points.

Reservoir station

Speaking about the reservoir, first of all we note the unusual nature of the area where it is located. Since the station is located in the mountains of the Republic of North Ossetia - Alanya, the nature here is, of course, very beautiful. Most often in the mountains it is windy, however, in the windless days the reservoir of the hydroelectric station fascinates everyone with its appearance. The water that comes here from the Ardon River is clean and transparent. In autumn you can admire the mountain slopes covered with golden buckthorn bush. The beauty of the surrounding nature and the reservoir itself is the main reason for the large number of tourists attracted here by Zaramagh HPP. A photo near the dam of a station, near a reservoir or on a background of mountains - this is usually bragged by hundreds of tourists who come here on an excursion.

Technical characteristics of the dam and reservoir

Hydrologists regularly conduct water studies and monitor the work of the dam. The filling of the reservoir began in 2009. Its total volume is about 10.5 million cubic meters. The area of the water surface is 2.5 square kilometers.

What is the difference between Zaramagskaya HPP and other hydroelectric power plants? The height above sea level of 169 meters is the normal design reserve level of the dam. With such a backup level, the height of the embankment should be about 1708 meters. The station was built in such a way that, if necessary, the height of the dam can be increased.

Electrical part

The head station together with the dam water receiver constitutes a separate power unit. Through a pressure tunnel with a length of 675 meters, water enters the hydrounit of the station. The hydraulic unit is located in the shore station building. There is also a turbine. The turbine at the station is rotary-lobed, with a rotor diameter of 350 centimeters. This device weighs about 30 tons.

The power of the hydraulic unit depends on the height of the water set on the dam. At a normal water level of 18.6 meters, the power of the device is 15 MW, and with an increase in the height of the dam, the power can reach 33 MW.

After all construction and installation work is completed at Zaramagskaya HPP-1, the power of the hydroelectric unit will drop to about 10 MW. It is planned that the station will generate 34.5 million kWh / year in autonomous mode and 23 million kWh / year after Zaramagskaya HPP-1 is launched.

Zaramagskaya HPP is equipped with the most up-to-date protection and automation systems. The protective system consists of a single monitoring system. The HES specialists carry out field observations and can easily assess the reliability and safety of the plant's facilities thanks to the new test equipment installed on the dam.

Archaeological research

The land, where Zaramagskaya HPP is located, keeps the objects of the cultural and historical heritage of Russia. Simultaneously with the construction of the cascade of HPPs, a decision was made to start large-scale archaeological excavations in the territory planned to be used as a reservoir of hydroelectric power stations. Due to insufficient funding, archaeological searches were temporarily closed. With the aim of preserving the evidence of the life and way of life of the peoples of the south of Russia, the company "RusHydro", which is engaged in the construction of the HPP, has allocated money from its own budget to conduct archaeological work in this region. Scientists have found rings of copper and silver from different eras with both Christian and Muslim symbols.

Researchers also studied the burial ground "Mamisondon", dated 9-7 c. BC. E. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Nardon and Mamisondon, at their confluence in Ardon. What nationalities belonged to this burial ground, for today it is not established. It is supposed that this monument of history was formed during the Khazar wars. The Arabs and Khazars repeatedly fought among themselves in these parts at that time.

At a distance of 4.5 kilometers from Zaramagh there is another historical object - the Kasar fortification. The word "Casar" of Arab origin means "castle", "palace".

All the data obtained as a result of archaeological research in this region were systematized and arranged in a book that should soon be published.

Zaramagskaya HPP-1

Not long ago, the construction of a vertical trunk was completed at Zaramagskaya HPP-1. This structure is one of the most high-pressure structures on the whole territory of the Russian Federation. The height of the shaft is 508 meters, the pressure inside is about 60 atmospheres. The construction of the tunnel between the head station and the main power unit of the cascade in the village of Mizura was completed.

Zaramagskaya HPP-1 according to the plan of works will be launched only on December 25, 2018. After its launch, the electricity deficit in North Ossetia will no longer be 80%, as now, but only 30%.

Where is Zaramagskaya HPP located?

Company address: Republic of North Ossetia-Alania, Vladikavkaz, ul. Pervomayskaya, 34. Contact the workers of Zaramagskaya HPP and find out more information about the construction of the station on the official website.