The hydropower plant is equipped with two turbines having an output of 110 MW and two with an output of 30 MW. "This is an ideal distribution from the point of view of optimizing energy production so that we can make full use of the dam's potential as well as the minimum ecological flow," explains Jakub Fajfr, Director of Strategy and Development at ENERGO-PRO. The runners of large turbines have a diameter of 3800 mm, of small ones 1960 mm. A technical curiosity lies in the fact that the large runners were made as one large cast - monoblock, and then machined. They are the largest Francis turbine runners produced by this method in Turkey.
The Alpaslan 2 hydropower plant was connected to the grid on October 24, 2020, after the successful installation of the first Francis turbine. ENERGO-PRO thus met all the conditions for obtaining a guaranteed dollar tariff, which applies from 1 January 2021 for the first ten years of operation of the hydropower plant. The total investment was around USD 600 million. ENERGO-PRO financed the construction mainly from its own resources, and in the final phase of the construction it used financing from the consortium of MUFG and ČEB banks in the amount of USD 175 million with insurance from the Export Guarantee and Insurance Company EGAP. "This is a unique success of the Czech investor abroad, moreover in the field of green energy. This project is also unique because of its financing model, as for the first time ever the renowned international bank MUFG (note: Mitsubishi Bank) was the leader of the banks´ club," says EGAP CEO Jan Procházka.
The guaranteed dollar tariff consists of two parts - for the first ten years of the hydropower plant operation it will be USD 73 per one megawatt-hour, and on top of that this tariff will be increased for the first five years, as the Turkish government has set clear favourable conditions if you build a turbine in Turkey. As the result, ENERGO-PRO sells energy from the Alpaslan 2 hydropower plant for USD 86 per megawatt hour. "The dollar tariff is, of course, a huge advantage, it provides investors in renewable sources with greater security, currency risk coverage and also allows them to finance such long-term infrastructure projects in green energy sector," confirms Jakub Fajfr, Director of Strategy and Development.
The hydropower plant should produce 850 GWh per year in full operation, this year ENERGO-PRO expects to produce over 650 GWh. After launching all four units, the hydropower plant produces approximately 3 GWh per day now.
The new dam with the Alpaslan 2 hydropower plant has been built up on the Murat River. With its water area of around 55 km2, it ranks among the 10 largest reservoirs in Turkey, and is the largest one operated by the private investor. ENERGO-PRO had started construction of the dam in September 2018 and completed it in two years. The volume of the dam body is 9.05 million cubic meters.
The construction proceeded 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and up to 1,900 workers were involved in the construction works.
The hydropower plants are currently the world's most important low-emission and renewable source of energy. They supply almost 17% of the world's electricity and about 70% of renewable electricity. ENERGO-PRO is the largest Czech company investing in hydropower for more than 25 years. At present, i.e. after the connection of both new Turkish hydropower plants, the company operates 38 hydropower plants in 4 countries around the world (in Georgia, Bulgaria, Turkey, and the Czech Republic). The total installed capacity in hydropower reaches 1,133 MW.
Contact for more detailed information:
Hana Hikelová, spokesperson of the ENERGO-PRO Group
