Penzhinskaya TPP: status of the project and prospects

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Penzhinskaya TPP is one of the largest tidal power plants in the world, the construction of the first stage of which is planned to be completed by 2035. If the project is implemented, electrical energy will be generated by the passage of large volumes of water through the plant's turbines at high and low tides. Average annual output could be between 50 and 200 billion kWh.

Historical background

The prospects for tidal power plants were highly valued back in the 1920s. However, scientific and technological development did not allow the construction of such large-scale facilities. In 1966, France completed the construction of one of the largest TPPs in the world, La Rance, capable of generating up to 240 MW of electricity. Two years later, the Soviet Union launched an experimental Kislogubskaya station on the Kola Peninsula with a capacity of 0.4 MW, later increased to 1.7 MW. Subsequently, similar structures appeared in the USA, Canada, India, Great Britain, China.

In 2011, the Sikhvin tidala power plant in South Korea with a production record of 254 MW. But even it cannot be compared with the Penzhinskaya TPP, which is being designed in Russia, the energy generation at which can exceed 100 GW.

Project of the Century

Such a loud definition is just right for the ambitious task set before Russian engineers, power engineers and builders. In 1972, the Hydroproject Institute and the Moscow Scientific Research Institute of Energy Constructions began research work on the design of the Penzhinskaya TPP. The status of the project is under development and active discussion between a number of scientific and industrial sectors. Issues of logistics and attraction of investments from partner countries from Asia interested in inexpensive environmentally friendly electricity are being considered, unique construction technologies are being tested.

Shelikhov Bay is not accidentally chosen as the location of the unique TPP. The basin area is large (20,500 km2), while the strait, which is planned to be blocked, is quite narrow by ocean standards and shallow. The waters of the Sea of Okhotsk rise up to 13 m at the peak of the tide, which guarantees high plant performance.

Tasks

In total, it is planned to build two queues of the object:

• The "North alignment" (Penzhinskaya TPP-1) will stretch for 32 km at depths of up to 26 m. Its capacity will be estimated at 21 GW, which equals 72 billion kWh of electricity per year.
• "Southernalignment” (PES-2) will be even larger: depths up to 67 m, length about 72 km. The capacity of the second stage will be incredible - 87.4 GW (more than 200 billion kWh).

The commissioning of the station will not only solve the energy issue of the entire Far Eastern region of Russia, but also has an incredible export potential. However, before the practical implementation of the project, many complex tasks still need to be discussed: from issues of construction and operation in difficult climatic conditions (ice thickness in winter reaches 1.5 m), to transmission of electricity over long distances.

Building Technology

If the project can be implemented on the planned scale, the photo of the Penzhinskaya TPP will impress with incredible scale. The station will become one of the largest man-made objects of mankind.

The hardest part will be building solid platinum. Since construction by the bulk method is impossible due to difficulties with the extraction and delivery of building materials (huge volumes of earth, stones, concrete will be required), it was decided to “grow” the dam by alluvial soil from the bottom of the bay. Fortunately, the world has accumulated rich experience in creating artificial islands.

Then, separate concrete thin-walled blocks (250 m long and 30 m wide) will be introduced into the platinum, in which hydroturbines (10 per block) will be installed, capable of rotating under the influence of tidal water flows. The capacity of each unit will be 20 MW.

Naturally, gateways will be built into the design of the Penzhinskaya TPP, throughwhich the passage of vessels is carried out, as well as special fish passage facilities. By the way, a highway will run along the top of the dam, which will connect Magadan and the Kamchatka Territory in a straight line.

The countries of the Pacific region (primarily South Korea) will certainly act as partners. Part of the blocks (and possibly all) will be manufactured here in full operational readiness, then transported by sea to the Penzhinskaya Bay and installed on a prepared base. By the way, a similar experience of cooperation has already been tested in the development of the Sakhalin oil and gas field.

Competitors

A number of Asian countries are already implementing tide station projects. First of all, these are China and South Korea. In China, since 1980, technologies have been tested on the basis of the Jianxia power plant (3.2-3.9 MW). In the future, it is planned to build larger facilities at the mouth of the Yalu and Yangtze rivers. The capacity of the latter may be 22.5 GW, which is four times less than the Penzhinskaya TPP.

South Korea has moved much further. In addition to the largest power plant in the province of Gyeonggi, design work is underway to build a similar facility in Incheon. Its productivity will reach 800 (and possibly 1320) MW.