Ruacana adds 15MW to power grid

NAMPOWER has commissioned refurbished and upgraded turbine runners at its Ruacana Power Station, signifying the completion of its runners replacement project.

The project to refurbish three turbines that will each produce an additional 5MW cost N$140 million. This means that the power station’s capacity has effectively increased from 332MW to 347MW.

Speaking during the commissioning, Nampower managing director Simson Haulofu said the turbine runners were very old and physical deterioration decreased electricity output.

“Initially commissioned in 1978, the turbine runners have become old over the years and physical damage to parts of the runner structures decreased output from the three units,” he said.

The project kicked off in 2011 when NamPower appointed Andritz Hydro to do model testing of a prototype runner blade design as part of the feasibility study.

Haulofu also said the feasibility study projected that the new X-blade runner will increase power output to 5MW each, improve water discharge efficiency by about 10% and reduce cavitation.

“Andritz Hydro being the original equipment manufacturer was awarded the tender in November 2012 to design, manufacture and supply major components such as the turbine runner, head cover sanitary wearing ring, lower stationary wearing ring, bottom ring, discharge ring and guide vane bottom sleeves and associated components,” said Haulofu. Haulofu said refurbishment work kicked off with unit 1 in June 2014 whereas the refurbishment of unit three commenced in May 2015.

He further said the company has been financially disciplined over the years, a stance that he said enabled them credibility with financial institutions and development funders and accorded them an opportunity to get loans for large-scale projects.

“We are remunerated competitively and have benefits that many a working person can only dream of, making us one of the most sought after companies to work for,” said Haulofu. He further said the new development forms part of NamPower’s Short-Term Critical Supply programme, under which a number of short to medium-term projects have been and continue to be implemented to address the shortage of electricity until a base-load power station is commissioned.

Speaking at the same event, mines and energy permanent secretary Simeon Negumbo said the additional generation capacity will indeed contribute to Namibia’s­ national development plans. “The fact that the refurbishment project was largely carried out by NamPower staff, mainly the staff here at the (Ruacana) Power Station is commendable, and I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the generation team for their hard work and dedication to realise this project,” said Negumbo.

The official commissioning of units 1 to 3 on Friday also formed part of NamPower’s northern ­celebrations of the company’s 20th anniversary and was attended by NamPower technicians and other staff members.

In an age of information overload, Sunrise is The Namibian’s morning briefing, delivered at 6h00 from Monday to Friday. It offers a curated rundown of the most important stories from the past 24 hours – occasionally with a light, witty touch. It’s an essential way to stay informed. Subscribe and join our newsletter community.