According toBayernwerk Inc. Walchensee hydroelectric power plant turned 75  on Saturday. June 26, 1924 it provided power to the grid and the railway for the first time. Today, the power plant still generates the power basically the same way as 75 years ago. On average it is operated 3000 hours per year. It is expected that the power plant, which is the most frequently visited hydroelectric power plant in Germany, will feature an interesting exhibit, a café amd a shop at the end of 1999. (iwr) 

According to a  report by Welt am Sonntag newspaper a new prototype of a wave power plant, the Mighty Wale started operation near Tokyo. There are three chambers inside the Mighty Wale.. As a result of the wave motions air is alternately pumped into or sucked out of the chambers. This moves the turbines that are installed at the end of the chambers and power is generated by the generators. (iwr) 

According to press releases this year Canadian Hydro will provide Chateau Lake House Hotel with 840.000 kWh of water power, which is generated a hydroelectric power plant southwest of Alberta, Canada. (iwr) 

After only a few weeks of construction a new hydroelectric power plant started operation in Freiburg last Wednesday. The power plant is operated by the utilities corporation in Freiburg (Freiburger Energie- und Wasserversorgungs AG (FEW)). The energy generated in this power plant is supposed to be sold as part of the "regio tariff"(cf. news of May 19). FEW expects the annual power production to reach approxiamtely 150.000 kWh. (iwr) 

During the new "green power"-tariff the Freiburger Energie- und Wasserversorgung (FWE) (energy and water supply Freiburg) offers his customers electricity which was exclusively generated in the region around Freiburg. Under the label "regional power" FEW sells his customers electricity generated in district central heating plants and systems using renewable energies, especially hydro power plants. More information from the FEW under tel.: ++49-(0)761/2790. (iwr) 

On May 1st the cornerstone ceremony for the "Zukunftsfabrik" (Future Factory) of the Wasserkraft Volk AG took place in Elz near Gutach, Baden Wurttemberg. The energy supply of the new production plant shall completely be covered by renewable energies. The total costs of the plant in which up to 100 people will be employed amount to about 12 million DM. (iwr) 

During the State Initiative Future Energies NRW the 5th meeting of the work group hydro power takes place on 05. May. The meeting will be held in the ministry for environment, development and agriculture in Düsseldorf. More information under tel.: ++49-(0)201/172-1285. (iwr) 

According to press reports the "Day of Renewable Energies" will take place for the first time on 24. April in Würzburg. Aim of the event is to explain the possibilities to use renewable energies to people interested during visits of different systems. Besides photovoltaic and solar thermal systems a low energy house, biomass and biogas systems as well as the Würzburg hydro power plant at the river Main can be visited. (iwr) 

According to press reports a new high pole generator will be opened in the mill in Neumühl-Beutersitz, Brandenburg, under the presence of minister Regine Hildebrandt. Next Saturday experts of the Finsterwald Pilz GmbH will give information about the functioning of the generator to everyone interested. The generatordistinguishes from the common generators because it is already very efficient by low revolutions. (iwr) 

In February Voith Hydro Ltd. in Heidenheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, introduced and successfully tested model machines for the pumping turbines of the pumped storage plant in Goldisthal, Thuringia. Voith Hydro will provide four turbines, each with a capacity of 269 MW, for this new plant, which has a capacity of 1000 MW and therefore belongs to the biggest  pumped storage plants in Europe. The order was placed by Vereinigte Elektrizitätswerke Aktiengesellschaft (VEAG).  (iwr)

Are you interested in the power generation from hydro power? On this page under the heading Hydro Power Generation you will find the monthly data of the power generation of selected hydro power plants. (iwr) 

After appr. 20 years of construction the second largest hydroelectric power plant in Brazil started operation. The site of the power plant is the Parana river in Southern Brazil. The system consists of 18 turbines in total, whcih are fed by a storage basin. Because of financial problems caused by inflation construction had to be interrupted temporarily . (iwr)

Operators of hydro power plants and environmentalists have reached an agreement together with the government in Chemnitz to involve the environment associations  in the future in all matters concerning the use of hydro power. Furthermore the agreement states that the operators of hydro power plants and the state of Saxonia will sign contracts in the future which oblige the operators to stick to a fixed minimum amount of water. In the following two years after signing the contract the water shall be examined by a specialist. following, the government will make a final decision about the rest amount of water, based on the specialist´s opinion. (iwr)

In order to be able to do year-round maintenance repairs at Ering hydroelectric power plant, which is operated by Bayernwerk Wasserkraft Corp., additional anchors are currently being installed. Thus far repairs have only been possible during the winter months because of low water levels. Holes, 15 meters deep, will be drilled into the ground in order to solidify the weir more strongly in the sole of the river. 96 anchors, made of profile-ground round steel, will be driven into the ground. In addition to that, certain spots between the concrete base of the weir and the gravel of the river will be filled with a cement mixture. (iwr)

VOITH HYDRO Power Plant Technology Ltd. from Heidenheim, Baden-Wurttemberg made a contract with Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCO) that regulates the supply of three Francis turbine, including control units and additional equipment, as well as three ball slide valves. Each of the three turbines has a capacity of 66.7 MW at a nominal drop height of 223.7 m and a rotational speed of 428,57 per minute. The turbines will be used for a project in Gilgel Gibe, whcih is approximately 260 kilometers south of Addis Abeba. The European Investment Bank (EIB) will finance the project. The Italian companies ENEL and ELECTROCONSULT will guide the implementation of the project. (iwr)

After the Westphalian agency for heritage preservation in Münster had rejected to put Mönkhoff watermill in Porta-Westfalica-Kleinenbremen on the heritage preservation list, as was reported in the press, the renewed request by "Kleinebremer Heimatverein" in August of 1998 was successful. In the meantime "Kleinebremer Heimatverein" had won the support of the district planning council and the city. Different concepts for the use of the watermill are currently being discussed. Apprt from other intentions the spruced-up turbine is planned to be reactivated for power generation. However, this plan has thus far been hampered by financial problems. Thus, investors are always welcome. (iwr) 

According to press reports Braunschweig Versorgungs-AG (supply company) plans to build up to two hydro power plants at the river Oker in Braunschweig. Possible locations could be, according to an expert´s opinion of the TU Braunschweig, three weirs in the city. In connectin with the construction of the systems means for fish-wandering shall be installed to grant free passage through the river Oker. The total costs for construction are fixed at about 500.000 DM per system from which about 100.000 to 200.000 will be for the fish-steps, according to the type of system. (iwr)

On this homepage under the heading hydro power generation the monthly power production yields of selected hydroelectirc power plants can be downloaded. (iwr) 

Where can I order turbines, water wheels, etc.? Who can refurbish an old turbine? Which engineering office will plan my projects? Answers to these and many other questions can be found in the classified directory hydro power under the heading Hydro Industrial Sector. (iwr) 

Yesterday the water power workshop of Landesinititative Zukunftsenergien (State Initiative on Future Energies) came together for its third meeting in the State Department of the Environment in Düsseldorf. During the first part of the meeting the Departement of the Environment introduced a state-wide study that will try to register weirs at NRW's rivers that can be used for energy recovery. During the second part of the meeting permission proceedings for current water power projects were discussed. 30 people participated in this meeting. (iwr) 

For 75 years the Walchensee-power plant, Bavaria, uses the difference in hight between lake Walchen and lake Kochel to generate energy from hydro power at times of peak load. In the anniversary year Bayernwerk Wasserkraft AG intends to erect a new info center "Experience power plant Walchensee" at the power plant to make the topic hydro power "understandable at the object". Besides an exhibition about hydro power a cafe shall be put up. More than 90.000 people visit the power plant each year. (iwr) 

ABB Kraftwerke AG, a subsidiary of ABB Schweiz, has received an 
order of the American Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to refurbish the motor-generators of the hydro power plant 'Raccoon Mountain'. By refurbishing the four water-cooled motor generators with 428 MW each, the capacity of the power plant could be "increased by 12 % and the plant would become more efficient", announced ABB. The refurbishing will probably be finished in April, 2004. The order volume amounts to more than 24 million US-$. (iwr)

From 19.-21. April, 1999, the 1st EU-China Small Hydro Industry Conference takes place in Hangzhou, China. More information: events. (iwr)

According to Bayernwerk Wasserkraft Corp. the high precipitation values of the past month have been very beneficial to the annual balances of its 106 hydroelectric power plants. 8.6 billion kWh of power have been generated in total. The company also said that approximately 80% of the total water power generated in Bavaria is produced by Bayernwerk's hydroelectric power plants. Water power utilization covers roughly 15% of the power demand in Bavaria. (iwr)