Hydroelectric Power Plants 0f Andhra Pradesh

In India, there are 197 hydroelectric plants. The most common type of hydroelectric power plant is an irrigation facility. At a large hydroelectric power plant, a dam is a structure that keeps river water in a reservoir. Electricity is a necessary aspect of human life, and our lives today would be unimaginable to fathom without it. You should be aware that power is generated by coal, wind, water, and solar energy. 

Hydroelectric power is a widely used renewable energy source. It generates electricity by making use of the Earth’s water cycle. India has a huge quantity of hydroelectric potential. However, it ranks 5th in terms of exploitable hydroelectric electricity. Hydroelectric facilities build electricity that is utilised for a variety of purposes. Andhra Pradesh’s first hydroelectric power project in Andhra Pradesh is Nagarjuna Sagar.

Hydroelectric Power Plant

Hydropower uses the energy of moving water to generate electricity. Rain or snow, which usually originates from mountains or hills, creates streams and rivers. This form of energy has been used for ages. Since the ancient Greeks, farmers have been grinding wheat into flour with water wheels. 

A water wheel catches running water in buckets around the wheel in a river. The mill is powered by the river’s kinetic energy, which turns the wheels. In the late 1800s, hydropower became a viable source of electricity. The first hydroelectric power plant in Andhra Pradesh was Nagarjuna Sagar. 

A reservoir can hold water controlled by a dam that opens and closes to regulate water flow. A hydroelectric plant normally consists of three parts: a power plant that generates electricity, a dam that regulates water flow, and a reservoir.

List of Hydroelectric Power Plants in Andhra Pradesh

Upper Sileru Pumped Storage Project

In light of the continued coal crisis, the state government has given Andhra Pradesh Power Generation Corporation preliminary approval to construct pumped-storage hydroelectric power at Upper Sileru in Visakhapatnam district, based on the most techno economically feasible alternative.

The state government has ordered APGenco to install reversible pumps in the Sileru system so that it may be integrated with solar and wind power for grid stabilisation. The project aims to generate 1350 MW of electricity during peak hours.

Project Pulichintala

The Pulichintala Project is a multifunctional project with irrigation, hydropower generating, and flood control as its main goals. It is a vital irrigation facility for farmers in the West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur, and Prakasam coastal districts, encompassing approximately 13 lac acres. It has 24 gates and a balancing reservoir with a capacity of 46 Tmcft at a full reservoir level of 175 feet (53 m) MSL (FRL). 

In August of 2014, the project began impounding the water. As a result, the project’s cost has surpassed Rs.1850 crores. The irrigation facility is situated along the Krishna River in Pulichintala village, Guntur district, between the Vykuntapuram barrage in Amaravati and the Nagarjuna Sagar dam. 

It has a 30 Tmcft live storage capacity to impound Krishna river floodwaters generated downstream of the Nagarjuna Sagar Tail Pond catchment region. This project reservoir will ensure that water is delivered to the downstream Prakasam Barrage on time. 

Kurnool Ultra Mega Solar Park

Kurnool Ultra Mega Solar Park in Andhra Pradesh is a solar park with 1000 MW that spans 24 square kilometres (9.3 square miles) in Panyam Mandal of Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh. On January 8, 2019, it was launched by Andhra Pradesh’s then-chief minister, Nara Chandrababu Naidu. 

Solar power developers and the Central and State governments put up roughly 70 billion (US$920 million) to build the park. The remaining 60 billion (US$790 million) was funded by APSPCL, with a 2 billion (US$26 million) subsidy from the Union Government. Solar power developers invested 10 billion (US$130 million), while APSPDCL paid the remaining 60 billion (US$790 million).

Hydroelectricity Projects Employing Pumped Storage

Pumped hydroelectric energy storage (PHES) facilities with high water heads are inexpensive ways to transform intermittent renewable energy sources like solar PV and wind power into a year-round baseload supply. Andhra Pradesh has enough PHES potential to utilise its vast solar PV power generating potential (over 1,000,000 MW installed on 16,000 km2 marginal regions) to meet its peak population’s ultimate green energy needs (60 million).

AP is considering putting up PHES projects to make extra wind and solar power available during peak load hours. PHESs earn money for the state through water consumption charges at commercial rates for evaporation loss or consumptive water from reservoirs and the hydroelectricity cess/royalty. In addition, the high-head PHES takes up less space than the same battery energy storage system for a three-story building (BESS).

Advantages of Hydroelectric Power Plant

• It is beneficial to the environment
• It’s a renewable resource
• It’s a resource put to a lot of different uses
• It is cost-effective and cost-effective
• It is a secure method of energy generation

Disadvantages of Hydroelectric Power Plant

• It affects the water quality
• Due to the fear of flooding, individuals are forced to relocate
• It could result in a drought
• A few areas have hydroelectric power plants
• It emits carbon dioxide and methane

Conclusion

The rocks needed to build dams are extracted from a reservoir. Because vast amounts of rock must be removed to construct rock-fill dams, less expensive drilling and blasting techniques and cutting-edge earth-moving equipment are commonly used.

APGENCO was formed on December 28, 1998, due to government changes in the electrical business, and operations commenced on February 1, 1999. The APSEB’s financial situation deteriorated due to a revenue-to-production-cost imbalance, a lack of significant reductions in technical losses and energy thefts, and high-cost imports from IPPs and other SEBs.