Experience of operating the Kairakkum Hydroelectric Station in Tadzhikistan in dry years

Abstract

1. The experience with operating the units of the Kairakkum hydrostation in dry 1974 at a head considerably below that allowed by the manufacturer showed that they have a certain margin of safety, which made it possible to operate the units under such conditions during a series of dry years. 2. The possibility of protracted trouble-free operation of the Kairakkum hydrostation units at low heads permitted the decision to dispense with their labor-intensive dismantling, which was done in 1974, in view of the absence of appropriate operating experience, as a result of which during the next three dry years at least 900,000 rubles were saved. 3. The experience of operating the Kairakkum hydrostation showed that the delivery of a 500–600 m3/sec discharge required for irrigation is feasible through turbines operating at low heads with a reservoir water level far below the dead storage level. 4. In the structures of hydrostations operating on irrigation schedules it is desirable to have bottom outlets which permit the release of water under conditions of deep drawdown of the reservoir.