Makari Gad Hydropower Project achieves an outstanding feat with WKV-turbines

Kathmandu: The Makari Gad Hydropower Project, located in Darchula District, successfully was commissioned in March 2023.

The project boasts an impressive set of features. With a gross head of 900m, it is the hydropower project with Nepal's highest head in operation. The station output is 2 x 5.0 MW and the electro-mechanical equipment for the project has been supplied by Wasserkraft Volk AG (WKV), a leading hydropower specialist from Germany.

The project was initially developed by Hydro Vision, a well-established company in Nepal, before LTL Holdings as a developing partner and Lankdhanavi Limited as EPC Contractor, both from Sri Lanka, joined hands in this regard. Building the civil works for the project, especially the headworks, penstock pipeline, and transmission line, was not an easy task. In particular, the lack of access roads for the complete headworks with freezing winter and penstock works made transportation of construction materials extremely challenging. The construction team had to transport each bag of cement all the way from the powerhouse to the headworks area via ropeways and mules. They even disassembled and reassembled a complete excavator at the headworks. Despite facing such difficulties, the team completed the project construction in just two and a half years to an exceptionally high level of quality that can compete with hydropower projects anywhere in the world.

Another unique challenge of the project was the installation of the 27 km stretch of transmission line. A study has led to the conclusion that building a 33 kV transmission line with poles would be easier and cheaper than constructing a 132 kV transmission line, which would require costly towers. Although losses in such a long transmission line at the 33 kV level are higher, the use of special conductor ropes with an above-average diameter has helped maintain the losses at a minimum.

Citing its goodwill for delivering high-quality and reliable equipment, WKV was contracted to provide the electro-mechanical equipment for the project's powerhouse. WKV is the only supplier manufacturing turbines and generators under one roof in Germany and can grant a warranty of 5 years. The turbines, generators, governing system, and control system, including the SCADA system, were all manufactured by WKV in Germany, providing unique advantages and benefits for the customer in terms of operation and maintenance. Landhakavi has already been operating other hydropower plants with WKV equipment for over 20 years and can attest to the fact that power generation is consistent even after 20 years of operation. This has made the investments profitable and has ensured maximum energy generation within the limited PPA period in Nepal.

The Makari Gad project demonstrates WKV's expertise across its product range in Nepal. WKV installed two low-head Francis turbines with only 35 m head in the Kabeli B1 Cascade (Arun Valley) project, which has come into operation since 2022. With Makari Gad, WKV has now put into operation a project with an extreme opposite head of 900 m and a discharge of both turbines of only 1.35 m/s. Although Nepal’s market is large, it is also equally challenging, however WKV has been a leading player in the market for over 20 years. WKV entered the Nepali market 20 years ago and worked with API Power Ltd on the first hydropower project realized by a private investor in the country.

Makari Gad provides a proof that when real experts work together, outstanding results can be achieved. Hydropower is an investment-based business, and the profitability of this business depends primarily on the reliability of the E & M equipment, which generates energy for the next few decades. Therefore, it is crucial to install only the best possible equipment to achieve the highest returns out of the investment.