The Tapovan Vishnugad Hydropower Plant is a 520 MW

run-of-river Run-of-river hydroelectricity (ROR) or run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation plant whereby little or no water storage is provided. Run-of-the-river power plants may have no water storage at all or a limited amou ...

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other Renewable energ ...

project being constructed on

Dhauliganga River The Dhauliganga is a turbulent Himalayan river which rises in the border regions of India and China and flows south into the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, India. It joins the Alaknanda, the major source stream of the Ganges river. Course ...

Chamoli District Chamoli district is a district of the Uttarakhand state of India. It is bounded by China's Xizang Autonomous Region to the north, and by the Uttarakhand districts of Pithoragarh district, Pithoragarh and Bageshwar district, Bageshwar to the eas ...

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...

, India. The plant is expected to generate over 2.5 TWh of electricity annually. Tapovan Vishnugad is NTPC's second hydro power project since its foray into the sector. The 520 MW run-of-the-river project is situated on river Dhauliganga in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. Its journey started with NTPC entering into an understanding with the Govt. of Uttarakhand for feasibility study for the project on 31.12.2002 and then signing the Implementation Agreement on 23.06.2004. Currently, it is in advanced stage of construction with around 70% of the implementation completed. The project has set its target for commissioning in first half on FY 2020-21. The Foundation Stone of TVHPP was laid by Shri P M Saeed, the then Union Minister for Power, on 14 February 2005 in the august presence of Shri ND Tiwari, CM of Uttarakhand. The power plant is located downstream on the Alaknanda River and will contain four 130 MW

Pelton turbine The Pelton wheel or Pelton Turbine is an impulse-type water turbine invented by American inventor Lester Allan Pelton in the 1870s. The Pelton wheel extracts energy from the impulse of moving water, as opposed to water's dead weight like the t ...

-generators. The barrage is being constructed across the

and has a catchment area of 3,100 km².

BHEL Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) is an Indian central public sector undertaking and the largest government-owned electrical/ industrial technology company. It is owned by the Government of India, with administrative control under ...

was awarded the contract to supply four 130MW Pelton type turbines for the Tapovan Vishnugad hydroelectric power project. The contractual scope also included the testing, commissioning and operation of the generators, switchgear and excitation system. The project construction was awarded to a joint venture of

Larsen & Toubro Larsen & Toubro Limited, abbreviated as L&T, is an Indian multinational conglomerate, with interests in industrial technology, heavy industry, engineering, construction, manufacturing, power, information technology, defence and financial se ...

and Austria-based Alpine Mayreder Bau GmbH, but the contract was terminated in 2014 as geological constraints delayed tunnel construction. The tunnel project was then awarded to Hindustan Construction Company in 2016

Flood damage

The dam, whilst still being under construction, was severely damaged on 7 February 2021 due to a flash flood caused by the Uttarakhand glacier burst; the

avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a Grade (slope), slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be triggered spontaneously, by factors such as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, othe ...

lead to large amounts of water mixed with sand & stone rushing into the Dhauliganga River, which caused severe damage to the NTPC Tapowan project. 140 workers at the construction site died or went missing as a result of the disaster.

Tapovan Vishnugad power plant details

The Tapovan Vishnugad power plant is a 520MW run-of-river project being constructed on Dhauliganga River in Chamoli District of Uttarakhand, India. The plant is expected to generate approximately 2,558GWh of electricity per year. Construction of the hydroelectric power project began in November 2006. Power production from the plant was expected to begin in 2012, but sluggish tunnel excavation works and flash floods in June 2013 delayed its inauguration. The project is expected to commence operations in 2016. NTPC is developing the project at an estimated cost of approximately INR 29.78bn ($677m). The Tapovan Vishnugad hydropower project will consist of four 130MW Pelton turbines, and a barrage constructed across the Dhauliganga River. The barrage will be 200m-long and 22m-high, and will consist of four gates measuring 12m-high and 14m-wide each. The reservoir is expected to create a catchment area of 3,100km2. It also includes an intake sill located at 5m above the riverbed, at an elevation of 1,787m. The river water will be diverted into the head race tunnel (HRT) via a desilting basin. The HRT will have a diameter of 5.6m and a maximum discharge capacity of 122.2 m3/s. The tailrace tunnel will be 493m-long and will have a diameter of 7m. A surge tank at the end of the head race tunnel will be installed to minimise the water hammer during operation. Two pressure shafts with a diameter of 3.6m each will emanate from the surge tank. Each shaft will be bifurcated into two branches of 2.6m diameter penstock and will be to feed water into the turbine.

References

{{GeoGroup Electric power companies of India Dams in Uttarakhand Dams under construction Hydroelectric power stations in Uttarakhand Gravity dams Chamoli district Run-of-the-river power stations