In Russia, small hydropower includes damless hydroelectric power plants (HPPs), whose capacity does not exceed 30 MW, and the capacity of a single hydroelectric unit is less than 10 MW. Such HPPs, in turn, are divided into:

• micro-hydroelectric power station (capacity from 1.5 to 100 kW);
• small HPPs (capacity from 100 kW to 30 MW).

Examples of small HPPs in Russia: Republic of Tyva - SHPP with an installed capacity of 168 kW; Republic of Altai - SHPP with a capacity of 400 kW; Kamchatka region - HPP-1 with a capacity of 1.7 MW on the Bystraya River, a cascade of Tolmachevsky HPPs.

Micro- and small hydropower plants play an important role in supplying energy to remote areas that are energy-deficient and occupy up to 40% of the territory of Russia. The development of small hydropower in the regions provides:

• creation of own regional generating capacities and reduction of electricity deficit in the region;
• reliable power supply with high-quality electricity to settlements in remote areas and at the end sections of main power lines;
• achieving economic and social stability in settlements that have not yet been connected to a single energy system;
• reduction of subsidization of the regions associated with the purchase and delivery of fuel to hard-to-reach areas.

One of the main advantages of small hydroelectric power plants (SHPPs), experts call the public attitude towards such projects. Such stations cause much less harm to the environment than large hydroelectric power plants. Among other advantages, the favorable impact of SHPP on regional development and business stimulation due to the small hydropower market is also highlighted.

At present, small HPPs operating in Russia provide about 2.2 billion kWh/year, and their technical potential is estimated at 382 billion kWh/year.

The natural conditions typical for the European part of Russia can ensure the generation of electricity at small hydropower plants, fully satisfying the needs of regions whose economy is oriented towards agricultural production. The construction of small hydropower plants will also make it possible to efficiently use the water resources of rivers for water supply, fishing, transport, etc.

The list of potential energy sources for small hydropower is unusually wide. These are small rivers, streams, natural elevation changes on lake spillways and on irrigation canals of irrigation systems. Turbines of small hydroelectric power plants can be used as energy absorbers at the height differences of drinking and other pipelines intended for pumping various types of liquid products. In addition, the installation of small hydropower units is possible on technological watercourses, such as industrial and sewer discharges.

It is estimated that the energy potential of small hydropower in Russia exceeds the potential of renewable energy sources such as wind, solar and biomass combined. However, Russia, having such a huge potential, currently, for a number of reasons, lags far behind other countries in the use of this resource.

Table 1. Potential of SHPPs in the Russian Federation (billion kWh/year)

Source: www.ne-fund.ru

The main factors for accelerating the development of small hydropower in Russia are:

• accidents that have become more frequent in the country's energy system (hydraulic units can be sources of autonomous power);
• requirements for the environmental friendliness of the generated energy, which have become especially relevant in connection with the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol.

The primary objects of consideration for the construction of SHPPs are existing and unused hydroelectric facilities. According to preliminary estimates, 58% of medium and 90% of small reservoirs in the country (20 and 1 million m3, respectively) are not used to generate electricity.

The energy-ecological niche for small HPPs can be water supply to the industry of cities, etc. In water supply systems on sections of the route with a large difference in surface elevations, instead of various kinds of mine interfaces, energy absorbers and other structures, micro-HPPs can be built. With water flow rates ranging from 5 to 100 l / s, their power can reach from 20 to 200 kW.

The profitability of small HPPs is ensured by simplifying their control scheme (for example, due to ballast load) and operation without maintenance personnel. The efficiency of an SHPP can also be increased through the multi-purpose use of its facilities, as well as through the issuance of power to the local grid (without long transmission lines).

Small hydropower development program

HydroOGK JSC (www.gidroogk.ru, the largest federal hydroelectric generating company) is currently developing a comprehensive plan for the development of small hydropower for 2008-2010 and for the period up to 2020, which provides for the commissioning of more than 300 MW of installed capacity by 2010. The main sections are concentrated in the Central part, in the North-West of Russia, in the Volga region, in the Urals and in the Caucasus (more than 290 sections).

Table 2. Capacity commissioning plan

Source: www.ne-fund.ru

The purpose of this program is the implementation of cost-effective projects in the field of construction and reconstruction of SHPPs with a total (total) installed capacity of at least 1000 MW in the period up to 2020, as well as attracting private investment in the implementation of projects.

Table 3. Construction projects of small HPPs

* Calculations are preliminary and subject to clarification.

** Including 205 million rubles at the expense of the Federal Target Program "South of Russia".

Small hydropower

Hydropower is the area of ​​the most developed renewable energy industry today, using the energy of falling water, waves and tides.

The main directions of hydropower development are: restoration of old SHPPs through overhaul and partial replacement of equipment; construction of new SHPPs at reservoirs for non-energy (complex) purposes, at industrial spillways; construction of damless hydroelectric power stations, which use the kinetic energy of a moving mass of water (flow). Such stations, with a capacity of up to 10 ... 25 kW, do not require large capital expenditures for construction, are environmentally friendly and easy to use when supplying energy to consumers of low power located on the banks of rivers, in the presence of elevation differences in small streams (sleeve hydroelectric power plants), etc. In the presence of water flows, it is also promising to use water rams for water supply purposes, as well as the use of water wheels and small-capacity turbines to drive heat pump compressors.

Description of the work of hydroelectric power plants

The source of hydropower is the converted solar energy in the form of stored potential energy of water, which is then converted into mechanical work and electricity.

Indeed, under the influence of solar radiation, water evaporates from the surface of lakes, rivers, seas and oceans. The vapor rises to the upper atmosphere, forming clouds; then it, condensing, falls in the form of rain, replenishing water supplies in reservoirs.

The potential energy of water is converted into electrical energy at a hydroelectric power station. Maintaining a constant pressure is carried out with the help of platinum, which forms a reservoir that serves as an accumulator of hydropower. In this regard, during the construction of a hydroelectric power station, certain requirements are imposed on the terrain, which should allow organizing a reservoir and creating the required pressure due to the dam. All this is associated with significant costs, and the cost of construction work may exceed the cost of HPP equipment. At the same time, the unit cost of electricity generated by HPPs is the lowest compared to the cost of energy produced by other sources. As a rule, the payback period of small HPPs does not exceed 10 years.

Fig.1. Machine station with hydro turbine

To convert the energy of water into mechanical work, hydraulic turbines are used (Fig. 1).

Distinguish between active and jet turbines.

In an active turbine, the kinetic energy of the flow is converted into mechanical energy. Additional devices that ensure the operation of the turbine are a conduit and a nozzle. A jet comes out of the nozzle, which has kinetic energy, which is directed to the blades of the turbine in the air. The force acting from the side of the jet on the blades rotates the turbine wheel, with the shaft of which, directly or through the drive, an electric generator is coupled. The efficiency of real turbines ranges from 50 to 90%. In hydro turbines of low power, the efficiency is lower.

The maximum efficiency value is 100%. It can be achieved if the jet, after interaction with the blades, moves vertically down only under the action of gravity.

The efficiency of an active hydraulic turbine can be increased by a limited increase in the number of nozzles, since with a large number of them, the mutual influence of the jets will affect.

In a jet turbine, the impeller is completely immersed in the flow, which constantly acts on the turbine blades. In the most common Francis turbine, the rotation of the impeller is carried out due to the pressure difference of the flow at the inlet and at the outlet the water enters the impeller radially. The gap between the impeller and the chamber is variable. After the flow interacts with the wheel, it turns 90°. Variable gap and flow turn improves turbine efficiency.

There are other design solutions for jet turbines, such as the Kaplan propeller turbine. However, this type of turbine is less common due to the pressure drop.

Hydroelectric power plants come in a variety of capacities - from 3 kW to 12 GW. Small HPPs (also referred to as micro HPPs and rural HPPs) are HPPs with an installed capacity of less than 500 kW. Their construction is usually carried out as an integral part of a complex that also provides for the development of agricultural production, water supply and flow regulation.

Hydroelectric power plants and living environment

Speaking of hydroelectric power plants, it should be noted that no other individual engineering structures have such a strong impact on nature as large reservoirs.

The reservoir supplies water not only to people, but also to the entire flora and fauna, which actively responds to new favorable conditions. This contributes to the emergence of new biological communities, the development of which was previously hindered by a lack of water (which is especially evident in small ponds arranged for the development of fisheries).

However, in an objective assessment of changes in environmental conditions, it is impossible not to take into account some negative biochemical and limnological factors.

As is known, in the stagnant water of reservoirs, oxygen exchange occurs much more slowly than in watercourses (rivers and streams). Once in such water, chemical impurities can create in it such an unfavorable stratigraphy (i.e., form stable layers of various compositions) that biological life becomes impossible, fish and many other aquatic organisms die. And when such poisoned water is released into the river, the death of fish in the entire watercourse may occur.

Dangerous for the reservoir and algae, which change the chemical composition of water. Particularly harmful and environmentally unfavorable are the processes of decay in water bodies of industrial regions.

In general, it can be assumed that reservoirs have an ecologically favorable impact on the environment, and negative factors are primarily due to the discharge of industrial waste and (to a lesser extent) the irresponsible behavior of a very large number of tourists and vacationers. As for the technological process of generating electricity at hydroelectric power plants, it is completely safe from the point of view of ecology. The construction of hydropower facilities should be designed with minimal damage to nature.

When developing construction plans, it is necessary to rationally choose quarries, the location of roads, etc. By the time the construction is completed, the necessary work on the reclamation of disturbed lands and landscaping of the territory should be carried out.

For the reservoir, the most effective environmental protection measure is engineering protection. For example, the construction of embankment dams reduces the area of ​​flooding and preserves land and mineral deposits for economic use, reduces the area of ​​shallow waters and improves the sanitary conditions of the reservoir, preserves natural natural complexes.

If the construction of dams is not economically justified, then shallow waters can be used for breeding birds and for other economic needs. When maintaining the required water levels, shallow waters can be used for fisheries, as a spawning ground and forage base.

To prevent or reduce the processing of the banks, bank protection is carried out. Enterprises, railways, residential and public buildings, ancient monuments are removed from the flood zone.

To ensure high water quality, it is necessary to sanitize the reservoir bed before it is flooded with water. To this end, agrotechnical measures are being taken to reduce polluted surface runoff and treatment facilities are being built.

The construction of large dams with power plants, as a rule, contributes to the conservation and enrichment of nature. Artificial lakes allow the complex use of water resources. Water not only drives turbines, but also irrigates vast surrounding lands and thereby ensures the development of agriculture. Reservoirs soften sharp contrasts in weather and climate, help fight drought, and thousands of people rest on their banks.

On the territory of the modern Russian Federation, the first micro-hydroelectric power stations were created in the middle of the last century, in the post-war years. In just six years, starting in 1946, about seven thousand small hydroelectric power plants were built in the USSR, generating several hundred megawatts of electricity annually. But by the beginning of the 60s of the 20th century, the leadership of the Soviet Union had lost interest in micro-hydroelectric power stations - the “peaceful atom” was recognized as a priority in the energy sector. As a result, a significant part of the operating micro-hydro power plants stopped their work and ended up in an abandoned state, in which they are still located.

Characteristics of small hydropower plants

Unlike the largest Russian hydroelectric power plants, which annually generate many gigawatts of electricity, the productivity of their younger counterparts is much more modest: the power of micro-hydroelectric power plants does not exceed 100 kW; pico hydroelectric power station - up to 5 kW. The second significant difference between low-power hydroelectric units is the absence of a dam at their location - it is virtually impossible to obtain permission from regulatory state organizations to block the channel of any reservoir, regardless of the distance between the banks, in order to raise the water level.

Important: Each and every body of water on the territory of the Russian Federation, with the exception of those located within private land plots (except for rivers and streams), belongs to the state and is under its protection (Water Code of the Russian Federation). Accordingly, any attempt to make changes to the channel of the reservoir without the permission of the authorities is a violation of federal laws.

The production of electricity by small hydroelectric power plants is carried out according to the same principle as that of their megawatt counterparts - water from a reservoir is directed to the blades of a hydroturbine and rotates it, and it transfers mechanical work to the rotor of a hydroelectric generator that generates electric current.

The power characteristics of the turbine are slightly higher than those of the hydroelectric generator, combined together into one hydroelectric unit. The type of hydraulic turbine is determined by the height of the water pressure:

• at high pressure (over 60 m), radial-axial and bucket turbines are used;
• with an average head (from 25 to 60 m), hydroelectric power plants are equipped with radial-axial and rotary-blade turbines;
• at low pressure (more than 3, but less than 25 m), mechanical work is carried out by rotary-blade models of turbines enclosed in metal or concrete chambers.

The choice of a hydrogenerator for a micro hydroelectric power station depends on the consumers of the electricity it produces. If it is supposed to power devices with an active load, i.e. completely converting the incoming electricity into its other form (light, heat, etc.), then asynchronous alternators are suitable. But in the event that there are electrical appliances with a reactive load in the network (any pumps and electric motors) that return part of the electrical energy back to the generator, then only a synchronous generator can cope with this. The reactive load on the asynchronous alternator in the design of an industrial micro-hydroelectric power station is compensated by the excitation and ballast blocks.

Before proceeding to the study of the characteristics of the known types of mini-hydroelectric power plants and pico-hydroelectric power plants, we will consider their general advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages of micro-hydro:

• electricity generation comes from a renewable source, more stable than sunlight and wind;
• proximity to the end consumer, energy losses for transportation are minimal or absent;
• low cost of electricity, taking into account zero costs for the initial fuel;
• complete absence of any emissions into the atmosphere, minimal impact on water basins;
• reaching full capacity for small hydroelectric power plants takes less time than for oil-based generators;
• far from the central power supply networks, only small hydroelectric power plants are able to provide consumers with electricity uninterruptedly, because. do not depend on a regular supply of fuel.

Cons of small hydroelectric power plants:

• the beds of small rivers and streams often dry up in summer and freeze through in winter;
• the performance of a mini hydroelectric power station is related to the pressure of water and its quantity. In order to provide your home with electricity in full, it may be necessary to create a dam upstream of the reservoir - but this is a violation of the legislation of the Russian Federation;
• the construction of a full-fledged, even if small, hydroelectric power station, capable of regularly supplying a country cottage with electrical energy all year round, is not cheap.

Damless micro-hydro power plants

The advantage of damless small hydroelectric power plants is that they are cheap and easy to install, their installation does not require approval from government agencies. Their common disadvantages are: low productivity (no more than 5 kW, usually up to 2 kW); a sufficient distance between the banks of the river and a depth of more than half a meter is necessary; damage in a collision with floating objects (more often - with fragments of trees); inability to use in winter due to icing of the reservoir. Consider some of the most interesting options for small hydropower plants.

Garland mini hydroelectric power station. Half-meter propeller impellers are made of 0.5-0.7 mm galvanized steel, they are strung and fixed on a 10-15 mm steel cable - it becomes a drive shaft for the generator. The cable is fixed with a bearing connection on a metal rack on one side, and on the other side it is attached to the shaft of the generator rotor. According to the calculations of its developer Boris Sergeevich Blinov, on a river with a flow rate of about 2.5 m / s, each hydraulic unit of a chained micro-hydroelectric power station will produce an average of 1.5 to 2 kW. Nothing is really known about the operating models of such a hydroelectric power plant, so it is difficult to judge its real efficiency.

Disadvantages of a daisy-chain hydroelectric power station: high material consumption; low efficiency; creating an obstacle to movement along the river (in fact, this is the same dam).

Sleeve micro-hydro power plant. It was also created by B.S. Blinov - development was carried out by him in the 70s of the last century simultaneously with a garland hydroelectric power station.

Its advantage lies in the possibility of using small reservoirs - for generating electricity, a stream will be sufficient, whose water debit exceeds 50 l / s and whose channel has a height difference of more than 5 m. Water is taken using a tapering pipe, the wide top of which is connected to the fastest part flow, and in its lower part there is a hydraulic turbine. In the USSR, sleeve micro hydroelectric power plants were in demand and they were produced at factories, but closer to the 90s, production was discontinued. Since 2000, repeated attempts have been made to establish serial production of hose micro hydroelectric power plants, but the demand for them is low - probably, the reason is the low popularity of these hydroelectric units.

Mini-HPP N.I. Leneva. Altai inventor Nikolai Ivanovich built his mini-hydroelectric power station in the late 90s, he received a patent for it in 2001. The design is based on two rows of flat, rectangular blades, each divided by an axis into parts unequal to each other, most of which protrudes opposite to the direction of the water flow. Such a shift in the center, according to Lenev, reduces turbulence around the blades, the axial pins of which are fixed above and below on the chains. Under the influence of the water flow, the chains with the blades fixed to them rotate, setting in motion two shafts located vertically with the help of star wheels. The work they do with the help of an intermediate shaft and a clutch is reported to the hydrogenerator. The performance of the Leneva micro-HPP, according to the developers who have acquired the rights to manufacture, will be from 2 to 20 kW (depending on the model).

It should be noted that, despite the repeated sales of Leneva micro-hydroelectric power station models stated in the press, the results of their testing and information on actual operation have never been published.

Gravity (whirlpool) micro hydroelectric power station. Unlike the developments of Soviet and Russian inventors, the small hydroelectric power plant of the Austrian engineer Franz Zotleterer, patented by him in 2003, attracted the attention of entrepreneurs from the European Union and Russia. The whirlpool micro hydropower plant created by Zotleterer is based on the early projects of vortex hydroelectric power plants, which were worked on by the American Kenard Brown in the 60s and the Australian Paul Courus in the 90s. Compared to the American and Australian micro-hydro power plants, Franz Zotleterer has achieved a two-fold increase in efficiency - 76-80% against the previous 35-40%.

The Austrian inventor diverted some of the water from the stream into a concrete trough built along the coastline. The channel ends with a concrete cylinder, at the bottom of which there is an outlet with a chute. Water enters the cylinder tangentially and, obeying the force of gravity, tends downward, twisting in a spiral - there is a turbine in the center, and then the whirlpool spins it (the average number of revolutions of the turbine is 30 rpm). At the whirlpool micro hydroelectric power station, built on a stream with a height difference of 1.3 m and with a water flow rate of 0.9 m 3 / s, the maximum power was 9.5 kW, the annual output was about 35,000 kW / h. Due to the constant rotation of water, the gravitational-vortex hydroelectric power station works properly in winter - in the center of the funnel, the water flow is the densest and its temperature is approximately 4 ° C, and the ice crust that forms along the edges of the concrete cylinder prevents the water from cooling in the center, screening heat back into the water.

The disadvantages of Franz Zotleterer's whirlpool micro-hydroelectric power station: the cost, including concrete work, is more than $ 100,000 (which, however, is cheaper than the construction of a dam hydroelectric power station); limited power - up to 150 kW. The Austrian project is at the development stage, since it has not yet been possible to achieve a consistently high output power.

Manufacturers and prices

On the Russian market, micro-hydro power plants are supplied by domestic companies Ecoteco (St. Petersburg), MNTO INSET (St. Petersburg), NPO Inversiya (Yekaterinburg), Spetsenergosnab LLC (Moscow), as well as the Ukrainian PP Avante ( Kiev).

Consider the characteristics, for example, of a sleeve micro HPP10Pr, produced by MNTO INSET:

• water pressure - min 2-4.5 m, max - 4.5-10 m;
• water consumption - min 0.07-0.14 m 3 / s, max - 0.095-0.2 m 3 / s;
• produced power - min up to 4 kW, max - up to 10 kW;
• rotation frequency - min 1000 rpm, max - 1500 rpm;
• voltage - 400 V (range of drops from 425 to 450 V);
• current frequency - 50 Hz (range of differences from 48 to 52 Hz);
• impeller, diameter - 235 mm;
• supply pipeline, diameter - 300 mm.

Her equipment:

• power unit (swing-blade hydro turbine and asynchronous generator), weight 180 kg;
• cabinet with ballast load block, weight 70 kg;
• excitation block (automatic control), weight 70 kg;
• water intake design, 35 kg.

Prices for models of small hydroelectric power plants are about $ 1,500 per kilowatt of installed capacity.

At the end

The territory of the Russian Federation is covered by central power supply networks by no more than a third, and there is no access to electricity not only in Siberia, but also in rural areas of the Urals. The refusal to further build nuclear power plants, potentially dangerous for the environment and the population, led to a long pause in planning actions aimed at providing settlements with electricity. Meanwhile, Russia has a significant potential in the field of small hydropower, but its implementation requires support at the federal level. For example, in some EU countries and in Belarus, there are state programs for the purchase of electricity produced by small hydropower plants at a double tariff.

In we will consider the conditions suitable for creating a small hydroelectric power plant, as well as ways to build it yourself.

With the help of hydraulic turbines of different capacities, installed on permanent watercourses (most often in riverbeds). As a rule, the creation of a hydroelectric power plant requires the construction of a dam in which hydroturbines are installed, but it is also possible to create damless hydroelectric power plants.

We will consider the possibilities of energy production using small hydropower plants and micro hydropower plants (SHPPs). In Russian practice, micro HPPs mean plants with a capacity of up to 100 kW, and small HPPs - with a total installed capacity of up to 30 MW with a single hydroelectric power unit of up to 10 MW and a hydraulic turbine runner diameter of up to 3 m.

According to experts, such a classification makes it difficult to calculate the gross energy potential of small hydropower, since it does not allow determining the technical parameters of a hydroelectric power plant. At the same time, the gross potential of VIZ is understood as its average annual volume contained in a given resource, with its complete conversion into useful energy. Attention should be paid to this problem, since all calculations of the potential of renewable energy resources are based on models and methods that determine the accuracy of the final result, and hence the efficiency of using a particular energy resource in specific conditions.

In the most complete work on the assessment of the hydropower resources of the USSR, published in 1967, the category of SHPPs included all hydroelectric power plants created on lowland rivers with a gross potential of up to 2.0 MW and mountain ones - up to 1.7 MW. These classification features are considered optimal, since they do not apply to the technical parameters of future HPPs.

In most cases, it is assumed that SHPPs are installed on small rivers and watercourses. Although small rivers are one of the most common types of water bodies, there is currently no single approach to their definition. Various criteria are used when defining the concept of a small river (small watercourse).

First of all, quantitative criteria are used. In accordance with GOST 17.1.1.02-77,; near a small river, the catchment area does not exceed 2000 km2, and the average long-term runoff during low water periods (minimum water level I) does not exceed 5 m3/s. At the same time, according to another taxonomy, the catchment area of ​​a small river should not exceed 200 km2, and its length should not exceed 100 km. There are also examples of how the classification takes into account the possibility of economic use of small rivers. But there is no single, generally accepted approach to the definition of the concept of "small river" in Russia.

Advantages and disadvantages of small hydropower

Like any other method of energy production, the use of small and mini hydropower plants has both advantages and disadvantages.

Among the economic, environmental and social benefits of small hydropower facilities are the following. Their creation increases the energy security of the region, ensures independence from fuel suppliers located in other regions, and saves scarce organic fuel. The construction of such an energy facility does not require large investments, a large amount of energy-intensive building materials and significant labor costs, and it pays off relatively quickly. In addition, there are opportunities to reduce the cost of construction due to the unification and certification of equipment.

In the process of generating electricity, the HPP does not produce greenhouse gases and does not pollute the environment with combustion products and toxic waste, which complies with the requirements of the Kyoto Protocol. Such objects are not the cause of induced seismicity and are relatively safe in the natural occurrence of earthquakes. They do not have a negative impact on the way of life of the population, on the animal world and local microclimatic conditions.

Possible problems associated with the creation and use of small hydropower facilities are less pronounced, but they should also be mentioned.

Like any localized energy source, in the case of an isolated application, a small hydropower facility is vulnerable to failure, as a result of which consumers are left without energy supply (the solution to the problem is the creation of joint or standby generating capacities - a wind turbine, a biofuel cogeneration mini-boiler house, a photovoltaic installations, etc.).

The most common type of accidents at small hydropower facilities is the destruction of the dam and hydraulic units as a result of overflowing over the crest of the dam with an unexpected rise in the water level and failure of locking devices. In some cases, SHPPs contribute to the silting of reservoirs and influence the channel-forming processes.

There is a certain seasonality in electricity generation (noticeable declines in winter and summer), leading to the fact that in some regions small hydropower is considered as a backup (backup) generating capacity.

Among the factors hindering the development of small hydropower in Russia, most experts point to the incomplete awareness of potential users about the benefits of using small hydropower facilities; insufficient knowledge of the hydrological regime and volumes of runoff of small watercourses; low quality of existing methods, recommendations and SNiPs, which causes serious errors in calculations; lack of development of methods for assessing and predicting the possible impact on the environment and economic activity; a weak production and repair base of enterprises producing hydropower equipment for small hydropower plants, and mass construction of small hydropower facilities is possible only in the case of serial production of equipment, the rejection of individual design and a qualitatively new approach to the reliability and cost of equipment - in comparison with old decommissioned facilities .

Hydro potential of Russia, its use

According to estimates made in the early 1960s, the USSR had 11.4% of the world's hydropower resources. The average annual capacity of the water resources of the former USSR was estimated at 434 million kW (3.800 billion kWh of energy output per year). Calculations showed that it was technically possible and economically feasible to receive about 1.700 billion kWh of electricity, which was more than 5 times higher than the output of all power plants in the country at that time.

The main part of this hydro potential (74%) was located on the territory of the Russian Federation. The average annual potential capacity of Russia's hydro resources was estimated at 320 million kWh (production - 2.800 billion kWh per year), of which the production of more than 1.340 billion kWh was technically possible at that time.

In terms of its potential, Russia's hydro resources are comparable to the existing volumes of electricity generation by all power plants in the country, but this potential is used by only 15%. In connection with the growing costs of fossil fuel production and the corresponding increase in its cost, it seems necessary to ensure the maximum possible development of hydropower, which is an environmentally friendly renewable source of electricity.

Under optimistic and favorable development scenarios, electricity generation at hydroelectric power plants can increase to 180 billion kWh in 2010 and up to 215 billion kWh in 2020, with a further increase to 350 billion kWh due to the construction of new hydroelectric power plants. It is assumed that hydropower will mainly develop in Siberia and the Far East. In European regions, the construction of SHPPs will be developed in the North Caucasus.

Historical digression

At present, the hydropower potential is almost completely realized at the expense of large and giant hydroelectric power plants. At the same time, according to available data, in 1913 the number of HPPs operating in Russia was 78 units, with a total capacity of 8.4 MW. The largest of them was a hydroelectric power station on the river. Murgab, with a capacity of 1.35 MW. Thus, according to the modern classification, all HPPs operating at that time were small.

Less than 30 years later, in 1941, 660 small rural HPPs were operating in Russia, with a total capacity of 330 MW. In the 40s and 50s of the 20th century, the peak of the construction of SHPPs occurred, when up to 1000 facilities were put into operation annually. According to various estimates, by 1955 there were from 4,000 to 5,000 SHPPs in the European part of Russia. And the total number of SHPPs in the USSR after the end of the Great Patriotic War was 6,500 units.

True, already in the early 1950s, in connection with the transition to the construction of giant energy facilities and the connection of rural consumers to a centralized power supply, this area of ​​\u200b\u200benergy lost state support, which led to the almost complete destruction and decline of the previously created infrastructure. The design, construction, manufacture of equipment and spare parts for small hydropower has ceased.

In 1962, there were 2,665 small and micro hydroelectric power stations in the USSR. In 1980 there were about 100 of them with a total capacity of 25 MW. And by the time of the collapse of the USSR in 1990, there were only 55 operating SHPPs. According to various sources, at present, from several dozen (60-70) to several hundred (200-300) units operate throughout Russia.

The program for the development of hydropower in the USSR up to 2000 provided for an almost twofold increase in the capacity of existing HPPs. It was supposed to build 93 new hydroelectric power stations, flood 2 million hectares of fertile land and resettle more than 200 thousand people from flooded areas. (Small HPPs were not included in these plans.) The collapse of the USSR and the economic crisis prevented the implementation of these grandiose plans.

Over the past 10 years, the share of electricity generated by hydroelectric power plants in the overall energy balance of Russia has been declining. In 1995 it was 21%, in 1996 - 18%, in 1997 - 16%. This is due both to obsolescence and wear and tear of equipment at the hydropower giants of the past, and to an increase in the country's energy balance in the share of a more convenient energy resource - natural gas.

According to experts, in the near future, electricity generation at hydroelectric stations will increase. This will mainly take place in regions with decentralized power supply through the commissioning of new small hydropower plants that will replace aging and uneconomical diesel power plants.

The place of small hydropower among other VIZs

In the production of electricity, small hydropower in Russia shares the lead with biofuel thermal power plants. According to available data for 2002 and 2003, SHPPs and bio-CHPs produced approximately the same amount of electricity - 2.4 billion kWh each (2002) and 2.5-2.6 billion kWh each (2003). That is, the contribution of each of these resources to electricity generation in Russia was less than 0.3%.

The total installed capacity of the 59 SHPPs for which we have information was 610 MW in 2001. According to expert estimates, this figure is currently higher. At the same time, the average values ​​of the IFC for operating SHPPs were 38-53%, and such an indicator, which is so important for calculating the efficiency of a power plant, as the consumption of electricity for own needs, did not exceed 1.5%.

Adopted in 1997, the Federal Target Program "Fuel and Energy" provided for the acceleration of the creation of an SHPP, but weak budget financing did not allow it to be fully implemented.

Despite financial problems, the construction of new and restoration of previously operating, but stopped and partially destroyed SHPPs is underway. In most cases, their construction and commissioning is carried out without the participation of federal budget funds. For this, funds are attracted from local budgets, funds from sponsors and investors.

New construction is dominated by micro HPPs with a unit capacity of units from 10 to 50 kW, combined into systems of 2-5 units. Small HPPs are being built with a unit capacity of units from 200 to 550 kW, combined into systems of 2-7 units.

As a rule, SHPPs are created in remote areas where there is a problem with the delivery of organic fuel (in most cases - diesel fuel, less often - coal). In Adygea, 2 SHPPs with a capacity of 50 and 200 kW were built, used to supply drinking water. A 1,100 kW SHPP was built in Kabardino-Balkaria. In 2003, 7 hydroelectric units of 350 kW each were installed in the Krasnodar Territory. In the Republic of Tyva and Altai, 3 SHPPs were built with units of 10, 50 and 200 kW, combined by 2-3 units. In Karelia and the Leningrad region. - 4 mini-hydro power plants with units from 10 to 50 kW. Bashkiria also has 4 mini-hydro power plants with units from 10 to 50 kW. In addition, other SHPPs were rebuilt or restored.

Expected shifts in the energy balance

According to experts, the main purpose of the SHPP in the coming years will be to replace fossil fuels (primarily diesel) imported to remote regions of Russia in order to reduce federal budget expenditures and increase the efficiency and energy security of energy-deficient regions. The construction of SHPPs is carried out in protected natural areas and in places with a fairly stable water content regime of small watercourses.

It is planned to create 5 SHPPs on the rivers of the Koryak Autonomous District. This will make it possible to replace up to 18 thousand tons of diesel fuel in the energy balance, which is 30% of the total volume annually imported into the region.

More than 3,000 diesel power plants (DPP) with a capacity of up to 500 kW currently operate in the Far East region. The electricity supply of the region is completely dependent on the stability of diesel fuel supplies and the quality of equipment for its combustion. The cost of both diesel fuel itself and its delivery is currently so high that there is an urgent need to replace it with other energy sources. In addition, the wear and tear of the equipment of most diesel power plants is so great that it is urgent to address the issue of stability in the region's power supply.

Under these conditions, organizations designing SHPPs and carrying out appropriate surveys of small watercourses have identified more than 200 places for the construction of SHPPs, which, according to rough estimates, will make it possible to produce up to 1.5 billion kWh of electricity per year. In accordance with later studies, the power supply of a number of settlements in the Far East and Primorye can be optimized through the construction of 7-8 SHPPs located near consumers and integrated into the local power system.

The implementation of these projects will help reduce the volume of diesel fuel imported into the region by 28 thousand tons per year, which will free up vehicles and reduce the load on local ports. All this will significantly increase the energy independence of the Far East and Primorye.

Possibilities of restoring destroyed SHPPs

In different regions of Russia, the ruins of small hydroelectric power stations are still found, which in the middle of the 20th century supplied settlements and agricultural enterprises with electricity. Engineering surveys of the destroyed SHPPs carried out in recent years have shown that many facilities still have concrete structures, the restoration of which can be economically justified.

Among the advantages of the reconstruction and restoration of destroyed SHPPs, experts name the following: autonomy of supplying local consumers with electricity, independence from the networks of RAO "UES of Russia"; reducing the cost of creating local power lines; reducing the load on the local power grids of RAO UES of Russia; reducing the cost of expensive fossil fuels; environmental cleanliness of hydropower.

Since 1995, the Research Institute of Energy Construction has been working on the creation of a database of hydraulic structures and small hydropower plants on small rivers in the European part of Russia. At present, the database contains information about 200 such objects on the rivers of the upper and middle Volga basins, as well as northwestern Russia. An engineering survey of structures was carried out for 100 objects. A number of objects have project documentation. Almost all hydrotechnical facilities included in the database included hydroelectric installations. On the rivers, cascades of 2-6 SHPPs were built, which formed the economic coastal infrastructure. In addition, the cascades provided protection from floods.

Specialists of NIIES conducted surveys of some partially destroyed SHPPs and carried out feasibility studies for their restoration. Among the surveyed facilities are Veselovskaya SHPP (Rostov region), Kopylkovskaya SHPP (Velikaya river, Pskov region), Petrovskaya and Mirslavlskaya SHPP (Nerl river, Ivanovo region).

To search for optimal engineering and technical solutions for the restoration of SHPP in 2003, the Khorobrovskaya SHPP (Nerl-Volzhskaya River, Yaroslavl Region) was built with a capacity of 160 kW, generating 840 thousand kWh of electricity. It was restored as a permanent experimental base of OAO NIIES RAO "UES of Russia" for field testing of new technologies and equipment for the technical re-equipment of hydropower - incl. small. This SHPP operates in a fully automatic mode, both in terms of power generation and flood control. Experimental automatic shutters and Hydroplus, made with the participation of French specialists, were installed on the spillway dam of the SHPP.

In 2004, on the lake. Senezh (Moscow region), a restored small hydropower plant of the 19th century by Baron Knopp, built on the basis of hydropower facilities of the middle of the 18th century, was put into operation. The hydropower equipment of the restored SHPP is an orthogonal hydroturbine, which makes it possible to effectively use low-pressure dams, manufactured at the Prometheus enterprise in Chekhov, Moscow Region. In addition to the SHPP, orthogonal power wind turbines with a new design of aerodynamic braking are installed on its dam. The combination of SHPP and wind turbines will optimize the production of electrical power supplied to the local power grid.

The total capacity of the hydro-wind complex is 70 kW. It consists of two 10 kW wind turbines and two hydroelectric generators with a capacity of 45 and 5 kW. During the tests, it is supposed to check the ability of the integrated system to work for the network and for a local load, which will make it possible to use such power complexes for power supply to consumers in remote regions.

In general, it can be said that small hydropower in its development is experiencing the same problems as energy technologies based on other renewable energy sources. If only a few percent of those subsidies that are directed from the federal budget to support thermal or nuclear energy, or the so-called "northern fuel delivery", were directed by government agencies to the development of renewable energy, our country could look to the future with much more optimism .

It is no secret that recently there has been a new round of interest in the country in the topic of renewable energy sources (RES), especially in terms of small-scale energy. It is not difficult to associate its manifestation with numerous links in a long chain of reasons that force us to look for an alternative to traditional capacities. Starting with oil, which has reached another $100 per barrel on foreign markets, as a result, the increased cost of refined products on the domestic market and the government's promises to bring the price of gas within the country closer to the world level. And ending with the shortage of existing energy capacities, as well as the understanding that the organic reserves themselves are not endless.

Background

Once upon a time, the USSR had great scientific and technical groundwork and rich experience in using many types of renewable energy sources. However, in those days, the desire for gigantism in all its manifestations often put an end to many effective areas of energy. In the era of huge projects that required large energy sources, small ones could not compete with the electric power giants, which united in a single national network; could not provide the required flow and therefore began to fade into the background. Their place was taken by huge thermal and hydroelectric power plants, which began to be built in the 1950s and 1960s, and later by nuclear power plants. The cheapness of primary energy resources - oil, gas and coal - buried many areas of renewable energy for a long time. One of the most effective areas is not an exception - small hydropower: the use of the energy of small watercourses with the help of micro (with a unit capacity of a power unit up to 100 kW) and small (with a unit capacity of up to 10 MW) HPPs (hereinafter referred to as SHPPs), with a total installed capacity of up to 30 MW .

Back in the early 1960s, the USSR had 11.4% of the world's hydropower resources. At that time, calculations showed the feasibility and possibility of obtaining about 1,700 billion kWh of electricity, which was more than five times higher than the output of the country's power plants at that time. It was believed that the main part of the hydro potential (74%) was located on the territory of the RSFSR. Now this hydropower potential is almost completely realized at the expense of large and gigantic hydroelectric power plants. But back in 1913, the number of hydroelectric power stations operating in Russia was 78 units with a total capacity of 8.4 MW. The largest of them is a hydroelectric power station on the Murghab River with a capacity of 1.35 MW. Now they would be classified as SHPPs. Already in 1941, 660 small rural hydroelectric power plants with a total capacity of 330 MW were operating in Russia. The total number of SHPPs in the USSR after the end of the Great Patriotic War was 6.5 thousand. And during the peak of construction in the 1940s and 1950s, up to 1 thousand objects were put into operation annually.

But in the early 1950s, in connection with the above-mentioned beginning of the transition to the construction of giant energy sources and the connection of small consumers to the centralized power supply, this direction lost state support. Which led to the almost complete destruction and decline of the existing infrastructure. Already in 1962, there were 2,665 SHPPs in the USSR, in 1980 - about 100 with a total capacity of 25 MW, in 1990 there were only 55 of them. Currently, according to various estimates, there are from several dozen (60–70 ) up to several hundred (200–300) SHPPs.

At the same time, today it is believed that in terms of their potential, Russia's hydro resources are comparable to the existing volumes of electricity generation by all power plants in the country. At the same time, small rivers predominate in the hydrographic network in terms of number and total length: out of 3 million rivers in the territory of the former USSR, 2.9 million are small rivers, and 94% of the length of the Russian river network are small watercourses. It is characteristic that the majority of the population is concentrated in the watersheds of small rivers and in their coastal zones: 90% of the rural population and up to 44% of the urban population. According to modern estimates published by specialists from the Research Institute of Energy Constructions (Moscow), the technically achievable potential of Russian SHPPs makes it possible to produce 357 billion kWh per year. It is assumed that in the future, small hydropower will mainly develop in Siberia and the Far East. In European regions, the construction of SHPPs will be developed in the North Caucasus.

Beautiful plans

With such “initial” prospects for the development of SHPPs, there is no doubt. This turned the eyes of the authorities of the subjects of the federation and major players in their direction and became an additional factor in activating development processes.

Among the regions of Siberia, the most advanced in the issue of SHPPs is in the Republic of Altai, where a concept for the development and layout of small hydropower facilities of 35 small hydropower plants with a capacity of 105 MW in the region has been developed, two of which are already in operation. According to the Minister of Regional Development of the Republic of Altai Yuri Sorokin, a tender was recently held and a contractor was selected to design a cascade of hydroelectric power plants on the Chuya River with a capacity of 12, 25 and 25 MW. HydroOGK has made proposals for this cascade, as well as for two stations on the Multa River and the Uymen HPP, and a preliminary decision is expected soon. Also in the plan for this year is a competition for the design of the Argut hydroelectric power station with a capacity of about 100 kW. The fulfillment of the plans is a serious help in closing the 100 MW capacity shortage in the republic. Taking into account the plans to connect the Chuya HPP cascade to the general network, the result may well be a reduction in the tariff, which last year amounted to 1.66 rubles per 1 kWh at an average cost of 0.5 rubles at NOREM.

Serious plans in the Republic of Buryatia. According to the Deputy Minister for the Development of Transport, Energy and Road Facilities of the Republic Yuri Dobrovinsky, now the HPP projects on the Ulzikha River in the Barguzinsky District and the Takhoi HPP on the Dzhida River are at the stage of completing the environmental review and developing design estimates. According to preliminary data, the capacity of each will be about 2 MW.

Recently, HydroOGK took up the development of small hydropower by spinning off projects for the construction of SHPPs - the New Energy Fund - from its portfolio into an independent business line. Thus, the company has taken up the development of the hydro potential of small rivers, without diverting the main forces from large-scale projects. All initial plans of the fund are connected with the North Caucasus. Thus, at the VI International Investment Forum "Sochi-2007" the Fund presented seven projects for the construction of small HPPs in the Southern Federal District, one of which (the creation of three small HPPs in Southern Dagestan) has already been completed (the stations were launched in December 2007). In the other - the construction of the Zaragizhskaya small hydroelectric power station in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic - a private investor was attracted, which will provide 40% of the project cost, which is more than 900 million rubles. Financing of other projects presented in Sochi is carried out at the expense of the HydroOGK investment program. The commissioning of capacities for them is envisaged in 2008-2010, and now they are at the stage of practical implementation.

The prospects for SHPPs in the Trans-Urals are even more global: “Today we have data on 120 potential sites for the construction of small hydropower plants in the Siberian Federal District and the Far Eastern Federal District with a total installed capacity of more than 500 megawatts. With different levels of information elaboration: from ideas to serious calculations and justifications for investments,” says the Director General of the New Energy Foundation Andrey Zheleznov.

Difference of approaches

Such serious plans are somewhat overshadowed by the real latest experience in the construction and operation of SHPPs in Siberia, which has several not very rosy episodes. An objective vision of prospects is impossible without comprehending recent events. The technologies for the construction of numerous hydroelectric power stations that once existed are not suitable for modern conditions. Over the past long period, many competencies of those times for the construction of SHPPs have been lost, and many approaches to their construction have changed significantly.

According to the General Director of the company "INSET" (St. Petersburg) Yakova Blyashko, in Soviet times, the construction of small hydropower plants was approached in a completely different way. “Since the interests of industry were in the first place, they tried to use the hydro potential of the river in full, and therefore the small hydroelectric power station had a dam. But small hydropower should fulfill a social role and solve social problems. Even if the construction of a small hydropower plant is economically feasible, but it does not fulfill this role, then there is no point in its construction,” the expert is convinced. He illustrated his position with a conditional example of the old approach: it was considered normal to build a small hydroelectric power station with a capacity of 15 MW with a distance of 30 km from a social consumer, while with a population of 800 people, the need with a development perspective is a maximum of 1–1.5 MW at a distance of 5 km. In the first case, a significant amount of energy is lost in the power transmission line stretching from the hydroelectric power station to the village, and since the issues of its maintenance are not always resolved (gusts due to icing, falling trees), power supply failures are not uncommon.

In this regard, in modern projects, the approach of constructing hydroelectric power plants according to the diversion scheme prevails, when a diverting sleeve-watercourse is made from the river at the SHPP. This technology makes it possible to almost completely abandon reservoirs and avoid the construction of dams that are typical for large hydroelectric power plants, and also significantly shortens the construction period and significantly reduces costs. Yakov Blyashko noted that INSET does almost all projects without using a reservoir: “Under the diversion scheme without flooding, we created two projects in Kabardino-Balkaria, three projects in Karachay-Cherkessia and 17 stations with a total capacity of more than 200 megawatts in North Ossetia.” He is echoed by Andrei Zheleznov, who noted that “the main task of the fund is to establish a system of mass, in-line construction of small hydroelectric power plants, where, unlike large hydroelectric power plants that do not recognize standard engineering solutions, this can be done by technologies used in the construction of low-capacity hydroelectric facilities.” The unification of SHPP projects will also be facilitated by the availability of developed and industrialized equipment, and experience in its operation in various regions.

But, according to the director of Krasnoyarskhydroproject Nikolai Neiland, the point is not so much in the generating source, but in the energy-accumulating part of the hydroelectric power station, that is, the reservoir. The world geography of distribution of small stations mainly affects the warm parts of the world, where not a single watercourse freezes over in winter. This applies to a large extent to the North Caucasus as well. With the duration of winter in Siberia for seven to nine months, small watercourses that can give returns freeze over, which makes the operation of stations very problematic. “In Siberia, a small station will not operate normally without a reserve of water, at least seasonal regulation. To do this, you need to create a reservoir, which is a potential source of energy. If this cannot be done, then it is simply pointless to talk about a small station,” he concluded.

Many small HPP projects that the Krasnoyarsk Institute has worked on involve the construction of a dam, but large capital investments in the pressure fund (building a dam, preparing the reservoir bed) as well as an increase in construction time can become an insurmountable obstacle to the development of small HPPs. Regarding the derivational approach, Nikolai Neiland noted that many non-pressure stations existed, for example, in Tyva before. But basically they were intended to supply seasonal distant pastures and worked in the warm season.

The latest experience of Siberia

The arguments of the head of Krasnoyarskhydroproject are indirectly confirmed by the actual latest practice of building hydroelectric power stations in Siberia. HPP Kyzyl-Khaya on the Mogen-Buren River, designed by Krasnoyarskhydroproject, with an installed capacity of 400 kW and launched in 2001 with a capacity of 150 kW. This was done within the framework of the National Energy Supply Program of the Republic of Tyva through the use of non-traditional renewable energy sources, which provided for the construction of a cascade of three stations. For these purposes, money was received from the Ministry of Energy of the Russian Federation. Subsequently, the Department of Energy ceased to exist, and the program died. From unofficial sources it became known that all funds were spent on one station instead of three. Apparently, this was the true reason that no one was willing to allocate additional funds. It was not possible to find out the current actual situation with this HPP, however, it is known that since its launch, problems have regularly arisen with the operation. Yakov Blyashko, whose company supplied its equipment to the HPP, supervised the construction and now constantly assists in operation, described the situation at the HPP as follows: “This is not a bad experience in operating small hydropower plants, but a bad experience in selecting the appropriate personnel.”

With the second facility in the Altai Republic - SHPP Kairu with a capacity of 400 kW, there were also certain technical difficulties. According to Yuri Sorokin, the construction of the hydroelectric power station began on a state farm, and the impervious measures laid down by the project were not completed. In particular, the film, which later became unusable, is not protected in time. There are no issues with the dam itself. But due to the lack of specialists in the district, a number of difficulties arose with its operation, due to which, during the flood, excess water went through the top. Now all the shortcomings have been eliminated, and the HPP is operating normally.

The third and last small hydropower plant in Siberia - Dzhazator (Altai Republic) with a capacity of 630 kW was put into operation in November last year. And if Kairu was built according to the classical scheme, then this hydroelectric power station is already of a diversion type, with a small dam and a reservoir. Apparently, the problem of freezing of the watercourse does not threaten it, given that the minimum design temperature for its operation is -56°C.

living factor

All three Siberian SHPPs are located at a considerable distance from civilization. For example, the village of Kyzyl-Khaya (Tyva) is located 650 km from Kyzyl, and 120 km of the way from the regional center of the village of Ulagan to the village of Balykcha (consumer of the Kairu HPP) is overcome in four hours. At the same time, before the advent of the hydroelectric power station, local residents did not pay for electricity (diesel fuel for diesel generators - the main source of energy in these areas before the advent of the hydroelectric power station - was paid from the northern delivery program), and the news about the need for monthly payments for energy overnight made them enemies of renewable sources.

In addition, the general standard of living and education of the population at such a distance from a large civilization can be imagined. Therefore, a big problem is the availability of qualified service personnel. In the Republic of Altai, they believe they have found a way out of this situation. According to Yuri Sorokin, an independent management joint-stock company has been created at Jazator, the founder of which was the municipality. The qualifications of workers were raised through training at Kaira, as well as participation in the construction of the Jazator. Local employees hired by the UK should stimulate the sale of energy, collect money and directly operate. This experience is planned to be transferred to the Kairu SHPP, where the municipality previously had an agreement with a company that carried out only maintenance and received remuneration for technical services. At the same time, the service personnel did not have specialized knowledge of hydropower.

Andrey Zheleznov sees the solution to the personnel problem as follows: “Since at this stage our projects are being implemented in the regions where HydroOGK operates, we are going to operate the built small HPPs with the involvement of specialists from the company's regional branches. When working in regions where there are no branches of HydroOGK, it is beneficial for us to recruit a large number of projects with such an economy that would justify the creation and maintenance of a team of operational specialists,” he is convinced.

Economy is the engine of progress

Despite the multiple technical and organizational issues of SHPPs and the growing interest in them, the number of ongoing projects in Siberia is still extremely small. Most likely, the main driver should be the economic component. In particular, in many remote settlements that are now supplied with electricity from diesel generators, its cost is very high. In Altai, it reaches 22 rubles per 1 kWh. For example, after the launch of the Dzhazator HPP, the cost of energy for the local population at a cost of 53 kopecks per 1 kWh amounted to 4.2 rubles. A further reduction in the tariff is planned due to the connection of new consumers, the transfer of the social sphere to electric heating and an increase in energy consumption by the population.

In addition, one of the main arguments of the SHPP construction activists is the existing distortions in the centralized power supply, when the losses in the networks reach or exceed the volumes of electricity consumed by remote areas. Thus, according to Yuri Dobrovinsky, the Republic of Buryatia is fully electrified, so the main task of the new SHPPs is to increase the economic efficiency of energy supply.

In the opinion of many experts, the lack of information about the very possibility of private capital participation in small hydroelectric power plant construction projects hinders the massive influx of investors into this sector. The last go-ahead for investors was the launch of a system of state support measures for renewable energy, adopted in November 2007, in the form of amendments to the Federal Law “On the Electric Power Industry”. They guarantee subsidizing the costs of connecting generating facilities to the grids at the expense of the federal budget, and also provide premiums to the price for each kWh of electricity produced in excess of the wholesale market norm by small HPPs. Also, energy systems are obligated to purchase renewable energy energy in certain volumes. The adoption of all by-laws regulating the implementation of innovations should be expected no earlier than mid-2008. After that, taking into account the initiative of local administrations, which often bear the costs of designing, and the experience of operating already built facilities, a serious breakthrough will come in this segment.

In preparing the article, materials from the periodical scientific and technical journal "Small Power Engineering" were used. - M., 2004. - No. 1.

• The hydropower potential of Russia is colossal, but today it is poorly used. 80% of hydropower resources remain undeveloped.
• The use of the energy of small rivers seems to be one of the most relevant areas in the development of hydropower resources in the Russian Federation.
• The development of small hydro generation is an environmentally acceptable and economically viable method for solving a whole range of problems related to energy security and electricity shortages in certain areas of our country.