Andritz Hydro

Water to wire┬áThe rising demand for clean renewable energy is causing a resurgence in new hydropower facilities, and Andritz Hydro is expanding in North America to meet it, learns Brendan A. Smith. Andritz Hydro, the market leader in design and supply of hydro turbines, has a diverse global presence. Headquartered in Graz, Austria, the parent company employs over 13,200 people around the world. With the 2006 acquisition of the hydro power division of VA Technology AG, Andritz Hydro became an industry frontrunner producing turnkey electro-mechanical equipment for hydro power plants.  Further solidifying its leadership role in the industry, Andritz Hydro also recently acquired GE Hydro, giving the company the keys to markets in North America. AndritzÔÇÖs hydro tech power division is divided into five sub-divisions, each meeting a specific need in the overall goal of producing clean hydro powered energy.┬á┬áThe Large Hydro division focuses on turnkey construction, providing clients the complete package, from supply and installation of hydro power plants to site management, testing, and training. The Service and Rehab division maintains and upgrades existing hydro power facilities. The remaining divisions comprise the Compact Hydro division, responsible for medium hydropower projects, the Pumps division, which produces pumps for specific applications including for the primary and secondary loops in nuclear power stations, and the Generator Turbo division, which supplies air and hydrogen cooled turbo generators.┬á┬á┬á┬á┬á According to Andritz Hydro, only 30 percent of global hydropower resources have been developed and the benefits of hydropower are only just beginning to be realized. A proven form of clean, renewable power generation, hydropower is cost efficient and not sensitive to fuel price increases. Last year the company was awarded a contract by Peter Kiewit Sons Inc, whose client Plutonic Power Company is building two hydropower plants at East Toba and Montrose in British Columbia, about 160 km northwest of Vancouver. Andritz Hydro will deliver two turbines, generators, inlet valves, turbine governors, static excitation systems and star-point cubicles for each of the two plants. Both projects are run-of-the-river type, drawing power from natural river flows and so minimizing the effects on the natural environment.┬á┬áBoth plants are located at extremely remote sites, inaccessible by road, so all the equipment has to be floated 240 miles upriver to the construction site.The energy produced at the plants will be fed to consumers via a 150 kilometer long over-head power line, the construction of which is also part of the project. The Andritz Group has enjoyed double digit growth, both through organic growth and strategic acquisitions. The acquisition of GE Hydro allows Andritz Hydro access to North America, in which Britissh Columbia in particular is an extremely dynamic market for the development of hydropower plants. Andritz Hydro is also active in South America, having been awarded last November a contract for the supply of equipment, erection, and supervision of a large capacity hydropower plant in Santo Antonio, Brazil. The plant will feature 44 generating units, including the most powerful bulb type turbines in the world (72 MW each), of which Andritz Hydro Brasil and recently acquired Andritz Hydro Inepar do Brasil will supply 12 turbines and 12 generators as well as 24 voltage regulating systems for the generators. The first unit is scheduled to start operation by mid-2012. ÔÇô Editorial research by Sam Howard┬á