Bucureşti, July 1st 2024

Electromontaj, in partnership with Končar Engineering Ltd., announces the winning of the tender for the refurbishment of Vidraru hydropower plant, one of the largest hydropower plants in the country, with an installed capacity of 220 MW.

Following the award of the tender, Electromontaj together with Končar Engineering Ltd. signed the contract with Hidroelectrica SA for the realization of a complex set of works necessary for the re-engineering of the Vidraru hydropower plant, one of the most important plants of this kind, of major importance for the National Energy System.

The works contracted by the Electromontaj – Končar Engineering Ltd. association include:

• The design, manufacture and execution of assembly works for the entire set of mechanical and electrical equipment related to the entire hydrotechnical arrangement, among the most important equipment being 2 flat valves, 2 butterfly valves with diameters of 4200 mm, 4 spherical valves with diameters of 1800 mm , 4 hydro aggregates equipped with 61,000 kW Francis turbines.
• The rehabilitation works of the embedded metal parts related to the water intake, the forced well and the overhead pipe having variable diameters between 4 000 and 5 000 mm.
• Realization of an automatic control system – control of the operation of equipment and installations from all the objects of the layout that allows, in addition to local controls, the management of the entire process of electricity production and remote system services
• Project management activities consisting in the coordination of design, execution of works, services, purchase/manufacturing/procurement activities, delivery, testing, verification, commissioning in order to realize a complete refurbishment project.

The modernization process will ensure, in addition to replacing and/or rehabilitating all installations and equipment, an increase in the installed power of the plant from 226 MW to 244 MW.

“Winning this laborious tender represents a particularly important moment for Electromontaj and for the entire energy industry in Romania. The re-engineering of the Vidraru hydropower plant will significantly contribute to increasing the efficiency and safety of our energy system. We are honored to contribute to the modernization of one of the largest hydropower plants in the country and to put our expertise at the service of such a large-scale project, together with our partner on this project, Končar Engineering Ltd.. We thank Hidroelectrica for the trust they put in us.” declares Ionuț Tănăsoaica, CEO of Electromontaj.

The Vidraru hydroelectric plant, put into operation on December 9, 1966, uses the hydropower potential of Argeș on a sector 28 km long, between Cumpăna and Oiesti, making use of a total water fall of 324 meters. The reservoir has a total volume of 465 million cubic meters, of which 320 million cubic meters represents the useful volume.

The Vidraru dam, built by Hidroconstrucția, a company that joined the Electromontaj group in 2022, was, at the time of its inauguration, the fifth in Europe and the ninth in the world among similar constructions. The arrangement ensures an annual electricity production of about 400 GWh, in an average hydrological year.

Electromontaj has recently signed a new green energy contract for the Vifor wind farm and at the beginning of the year it completed another project of particular importance for the National Energy System, the 400kV overhead power line Portile de Fier – Anina – Reșita and has multiple ongoing projects for the design and construction of high-voltage lines, transformer stations, electric traction works, re-engineering of power plants as well as electrical projects for irrigation systems, both in Romania and abroad.