A first for Alloa in
hydro
Alan Stewart, general manager, Alloa operations, Weir
Power & Industrial Services Europe
Weir Power & Industrial Services Alloa has secured its first
major hydro refurbishment project in Ireland. The project is for
the Electricity Supply Board’s Turlough Hill pumped storage station
in County Wicklow. The plant was built between 1968 and 1974 and
has four units which generate a total of 292 MW and when operating
in reverse pumps absorb 272 MW.
The station is the only pumped storage scheme in Ireland and is
critical to the electrical distribution system providing security
of supply and the provision of peak power.
The contract is for the complete refurbishment of the turbine,
including site dismantling, condition assessment,
replacement/repair of specified components, site reassembly and
commissioning.
The hydro market in Ireland has a similar age profile to the UK
and this is the first rehabilitation contract in Ireland for many
years.
The contract follows Power & Industrial Services benchmark
performance in hydro refurbishment in the UK. The customer visited
a number of previous projects to review the end result which
highlighted the benefits of a positive reputation in the market
place.
Project manager Stuart Wilkins commented, “We are delighted to
receive this strategically important contract from the Electricity
Supply Board which gives us the opportunity to demonstrate our
extensive capabilities in this sector directly to the
customer.”
