Press release The TurbinatorŽ - Big news for small hydropower By using the CleanPower Turbinator, Statkraft (Norway) produces electricity from an environmental flow outlet, yielding during five summer months 0.7 GWh from a previously unexploited hydropower resource. Kristiansund, 6 September 2010: In collaboration with Statkraft and co-funded by Innovation Norway, CleanPower AS has this summer installed a pilot model of its new mini hydropower turbine / generator named Turbinator at the Statkraftowned Hegset dam in Norway. The machine sits at the foot of the dam, a challenging location for a hydropower plant. The machine must be compact and water tight to withstand the rigors of nature. Egil Opsahl, Managing Director of Clean Power AS says in a statement: "The machine is unique its robustness, being able to stand exposed to the elements. This makes it particularly well suited to the application at Hegset dam, where we produce electricity from the environmental flow outlet�. Svein Ove Slinde, Regional Director of Statkraft Energi AS comments: "Our vision is that as a European leader in renewable energy, Statkraft will meet the world demand for cleaner energy. We will achieve this by being innovative and being an industry developer in Norway. We shall think in new ways, develop opportunities and create solutions. Our participation in the Turbinator project is fully consistent with these objectives. The idea of producing more clean energy by exploiting the environmental flow outlets from our dams is something we consider as innovative." The pilot plant has an installed power of 280 kW. The net head is 24 meters and the water flow is 1.2 m3/s. The Turbinator has a permanent magnetized synchronous generator, where the magnets are mounted on the turbine runner wheel, giving a simple and robust construction. Permanent magnet technology facilitates multiple generator poles without increasing reactive losses (as in asynchronous generators). Increased number of poles reduces runner speed, giving increased efficiency. As no gearbox or belt is needed, there is no need for shaft alignment operations etc. It can be installed vertically, horizontally or any angle in between. A simple construction, the Turbinator is easily integrated into existing dam structures. The Turbinator will come in models in the 0.1 - 2 MW range with net head 10 - 60 meters, the water flow ranging from 0.5 to 10 m3/s. More information about CleanPower AS: More information about Statkraft Energi AS: Contact: Egil Opsahl Managing Director CleanPower AS Phone: +47 71 56 66 00 Mail: egil.opsahl@cleanpower.no
www.cleanpower.no www.statkraft.com
Dagfinn Ekker Specialist Water Resources Engineering Statkraft Energi AS Phone: +47 73 96 19 23 Mail: Dagfinn.Ekker@statkraft.com
For publishing no earlier than 15. September 2010