The Hardliangbao hydropower station is a 1.1GW hydroelectric power generation facility under construction in the Sichuan province of China.
Huaneng Sichuan Hydropower Company, a Chinese business entity involved in hydroelectricity generation, is developing the project with an estimated investment of ¥12.69bn ($1.96bn).
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The run-of-the-river hydroelectric power project received approval from the Sichuan Provincial Development and Reform Commission in January 2016.
The Hardliangbao hydropower station is estimated to generate approximately 5.14 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity a year, upon its completion.
Construction works on the project were started in October 2019, while the first unit is expected to generate power in October 2024. The hydropower station is scheduled to be fully operational by April 2025.
Hardliangbao hydropower station location
The Hardliangbao hydropower station is located on the Dadu River, in Luding county, Ganzi Tibetan autonomous prefecture, Sichuan province, China.
The project site lies upstream of the 920MW Luding hydropower station and downstream of the 2.6GW Dagangshan hydropower plant, both in operation.
Dam and reservoir details
The Hardliangbao hydropower station project will involve the construction of a concrete face rockfill dam.
The reservoir will have a maximum storage capacity of 20.754 million cubic metres (mcm) and a regulating storage capacity of 8.26mcm, at a normal storage level of 1,246m.
Hardliangbao hydropower station make-up
The Hardliangbao hydropower station will be equipped with four vertical-axis Francis turbines of 270MW capacity each, and a 36MW vertical-axis paddle turbine.
The 270MW turbines will be installed in a 196.9m-long underground powerhouse, while the 36MW turbine will be installed as an ecological power unit at the gate site. The main power station and the ecological power unit will together produce a combined electrical output of 1,116MW.
The ancillary equipment of the project will include four sets of fully air-cooled 300MVA generators along with speed control and excitation systems.
The plant will be designed to deliver a flow rate of 1,261.2m³/s, while the ecological power unit will have a minimum water flow discharge of 134.7m³/s. The ecological unit will be connected to a 40MVA air-cooled generator.
In addition, the Hardliangbao power plant facility will include two 14.4km long water diversion tunnels on the left bank, and two tailrace tunnels measuring 1,065.36m and 1,164.48m in length, respectively.
The project equipment will also include 500kV and 110kV three-winding transformers, a 126kV gas-insulated electrical appliance, and a generator circuit breaker set.
Infrastructure facilities
The infrastructure for the main power block will include two sets of 400t/100t/6t single trolley bridge machine.
The ecological power unit will be facilitated by a single set of 250t/50t/10t single trolley bridge equipment.
The project also includes the construction and installation of a 35kV substation at the gate head of the power station.
Contractors involved in Hardliangbao hydropower station
Dongfang Electric, a Chinese power generation equipment provider, received a contract from Huaneng Sichuan Hydropower Company to manufacture and supply four turbine generators and a single paddle turbine generator set along with the ancillary equipment for the project in July 2020.
The Fifth Bureau of Hydropower was engaged for the construction works of the underground powerhouse.
China Water Resources and Hydropower Seventh Engineering Bureau was contracted for civil construction and metal structure installation in October 2019.
The 14th Hydropower Bureau was appointed to construct the water diversion tunnel.
Beijing Vibro Construction Machinery Company received a contract to manufacture and supply vibratory equipment for the hydropower project.
Tyson Electrical was selected to supply general gaussian distribution (GGD)-type low-voltage cabinet and high-voltage cabinet substation, while Sichuan Fangzheng Electric Power Engineering was responsible for the construction and installation of the 35kV substation.
