Towards green horizons Rainpower

TOWARDS GREEN HORIZONS

Rainpower, a Norwegian hydropower specialist, is entering a new stage of its development. With its proud history and now under new ownership, the company is in a stronger position than ever to deliver solutions for the renewable society of the future. Romana Moares reports.

Founded in 1853, Rainpower is an experienced project organisation based on Norwegian hydropower. Today, Rainpower offers proprietary technologies for integrated products and services to the hydropower industry worldwide. Headquartered in Lillestrøm, Norway, the company has offices across Norway, as well as in Sweden and China.

Rainpower’s product and service portfolio ranges from turbines, governor systems, control systems and other equipment, maintenance services and rehabilitation, as well as technology for hydropower system design and upgrades.

The company can deliver everything from runner replacements to complete water-to-wire electro-mechanical systems and is at the forefront in excitation and turbine governing systems as well as automation for small hydro projects.

Through Hymatek Controls (a company in the Rainpower group), Rainpower is currently one of Scandinavia’s largest and most influential professional environments for turbine and voltage regulation.

Technical competence

Rainpower’s turbine laboratory in Trondheim has a played key role in testing and developing new turbines since 1985. The laboratory organises an annual upgrading conference featuring presentations covering everything from academic subjects to practical project implementation.

The company has a strong research and development team focused on studying technology lifetime prediction including damage and fatigue problems and collecting stress behaviour data for different operation modes by prototype measurements.

In addition, Rainpower is taking part in the HydroFlex project that aims to develop new technology permitting highly flexible operation of hydropower stations. The project is a research and innovation action with a budget of €5.7 million funded under the EU Horizon 2020 programme “H2020-EU.3.3.2 – Low-cost, low-carbon energy supply”. Flexibility of operation here means large ramping rates, frequent start-stops, and the possibility of providing a large range of system services.

The company’s technical competence is embodied in a long list of successful projects. Since 2008, Rainpower has supplied more than 9000 MW of turbine technology, with power output for single units ranging from 0.4 MW - 255 MW.

The most recent projects include a joint initiative of Rainpower and Hymatek for a complete electromechanical delivery to Statkraft as one of two contractors for the Vesle Kjela power plant.

Vesle Kjela is a new mountain facility that utilises the fall height in an existing transmission tunnel. Delivery includes turbine equipment, waterway equipment, generators, transformers, control systems and complete electrical installation. Rainpower and Hymatek have been responsible for the design, purchasing, production, installation and commissioning of the entire power station.

New owner

2021 is set to be a significant year for Rainpower. The company reached an important milestone with the entrance of a new owner,

Norwegian investment company Aker Horizons. In the spring, Aker Horizons acquired 100% of the shares in Rainpower and will contribute approximately NOK 100 million (€9.7 million) in capital to transitioning and developing the company into a next generation hydropower technology and solutions provider.

Rainpower will be included in Aker Horizons’ sunrise portfolio of companies that are in an early phase or require further development to realise their full potential. It will seek to identify and develop concepts for upgrading the hydropower installed base to reflect the needs of future power markets, including an increasing need for flexibility to rapidly respond to swings in intermittent renewable power generation and for cost-effective and sustainable power storage solutions.

With the new owner, the company also got a new CEO - Hege Brende - who will take office in August. An expert in renewable energies, she has previously led development and research programmes in the EU, Statkraft and NINA in hydropower and renewable energy.

“Hydropower has a crucial role in the transition to a fully renewable energy system,” said Brende. “The ongoing digitisation is also a strong driver for the power industry, and integration and development of digital solutions will be very important for gaining access to the value creation potential in the sector and in further markets.”

“Rainpower has a proud history and with Aker Horizons as its owner, the company is in a stronger position than ever to deliver solutions for the renewable society of the future. I know Rainpower, it consists of highly competent and dedicated employees, and I really look forward to meeting everyone and building the company further with them,” she concluded. n