Bieudron Hydroelectric Power Station

Geschichte

The Bieudron Hydroelectric Power Station is a hydroelectric power plant located in the Swiss Alps in the Canton of Valais in Switzerland. The power plant is fed with water from the Grande Dixence Dam's reservoir, Lac des Dix and is part of the Cleuson-Dixence Complex. The 1269 MW power plant is operated by Grande Dixence SA.Production began in 1998, with two world records set upon its completion: the world's most powerful Pelton turbine as well as the highest head used to produce hydro-electric energy. A penstock rupture in 2000 forced the closure of the power plant and it was operational again in 2010.SpecificationsThis facility houses three Pelton turbines, with each turbine rated at 423 MW ; note that the turbine acceptance testing process reported a maximum turbine output power of 449 MW each due to better than expected efficiency and ideal test conditions.At the rated power of 423 MW each turbine operates at a head of ~1869 meters and a flow rate of 25 cubic meters per second, with an efficiency in excess of 92% . The turbine assembly is a five-jet configuration; the stream of each jet is 193 mm in diameter with an exit velocity of 192 meters/second . The kinetic energy of each of the 5 streams is approximately 92.16 MW . The assembly rated pressure is 203.2 bars .