When visiting Dagestan, one cannot fail to get acquainted with the wonderful cascade of hydroelectric power stations - Sulaksky. Two hydroelectric power plants, unique in their architectural and engineering solutions, - Chirkey and Irganai hydroelectric power stations - are pearls of Dagestan, striking in the natural landscape and the scale of engineering. The main thing is to remember that these are sensitive energy institutions; visiting them is possible only as part of an organized group. But even if you are a solitary tourist, you should go to these amazing places to feel a surge of adrenaline while driving along mountain roads and see the second largest earth dam in Russia at the Irganayskaya hydroelectric station.
Why Avarskoy Koisu and Irganayskaya hydroelectric power station?
This mountain river, originating in a mountain gorge and flowing into the main river of Dagestan Sulak, in the upper channel impresses with rapids and storminess. In the lower channel, the Irganayskaya Hydroelectric Power Station pacifies the river, as if taming the rebellious Mustang and making it the second most powerful station generating electricity in Dagestan. The construction difficulties and the alarming recent past of this station create an aura of mystery and frightening mystery. A halo that does not combine with the beauty of mountain landscapes.
The first stage of construction - transport
The construction of the station took place in two stages and coincided with the times of turbulent 90s of the last century. The Sulak cascade of hydroelectric power plants is part of the Russian generation company RusHydro.
The study of the possibilities of building a station in the lower reaches of the Avarskaya Koysu river in the area of ​​the Shamilkala village was started by the designers of the Lenhydroproject Institute in the 1970s. But only in 1996 was the construction plan for the station approved by the dam-derivation scheme. This means that part of the water pressure is created with the help of a dam, and part - with the help of a straightening tunnel from a river bend 5.2 km long. For the construction of such a scale, it was necessary to build an amazing transport structure - the Gimrinsky road tunnel with a length of 4303 meters. This construction, the largest automobile tunnel in Russia, deserves special attention.
Hydroelectric construction
By the end of the construction of the Gimrinsky tunnel in 1987, work began on the construction of the main facilities of the station. And the years of perestroika, the grave economic crisis in the country, came. By 1996, the first derivation tunnel was drilled, and the dam was dumped to the level of 483 meters with a design of 578 meters. By 2001, 2 units were commissioned at the station, a capacity of 214 MW and an average annual output of 656 million kW / h were achieved. By 2008, the reservoir was filled up to the design level, reaching a capacity of 400 MW and a mode of continuous operation of hydroelectric power stations. A 111 m high soil bulk dam is the second in Russia after the Kolyma hydroelectric dam .
Irganayskaya hydroelectric power station: act of terrorism
On the night of September 7, 2010, the sky above the station lit up in flames. After a few claps, the station transformer caught fire. A photo of the Irganai hydroelectric station, engulfed in flames, spread around the publication. They managed to put out the fire in the morning. 23 people and six pieces of equipment made it possible to localize the catastrophe and do without casualties. Later it became known that the explosion at the Irganai hydroelectric station occurred due to a violation of the sealing of the oil pump installation. Emergency load shedding and automatic protection with the release of petroleum products minimized damage.
Further inspection of the station by law enforcement authorities revealed the presence of an explosive device at the main hydraulic unit in the engine room. Near the explosive device, equal to TNT equivalent to 3 kg, was a mine trap in the form of a ballpoint pen. The blasting of the Irganai hydroelectric station, if this bomb exploded, would cause incomparably greater damage. Data on the presence of the bomb gave rise to allegations of a possible terrorist attack at the station. Responsibility was assumed by a gang of militants called the Guraba Jamaat. Echoes of this incident appeared in 2011, when, right before the New Year, a TNT bomb was discovered at the station.
Security level
Permanent monitoring of the safety of the station is assigned to the special service of the hydroelectric power station, which operates in accordance with the Federal Law "On the safety of hydraulic structures." Based on this and other regulatory acts, a Safety Declaration for the operation of hydraulic structures was developed, approved by the Federal Service for Ecological, Technological and Nuclear Supervision. Monitoring of Russian and international experts provides control and supervision over the operation of units.
Error handling
After 2010, the Irganai Hydroelectric Power Station acquired a system of electronic passes and time tracking. The sensitive facility is under guard. A quick emergency alert system has been introduced and a quick response team has been prepared. The station is equipped with a signal-metal fence along the perimeter of both the dam and the hydroelectric power station building. Constant video surveillance.
Ecology and station
Despite some objections from environmentalists regarding land flooding during the construction of the station, one cannot but note the responsible attitude of JSC RusHydro to environmental safety issues. Every year, at least 10 million rubles are allocated to the organization’s budget to improve the environmental activities of the Irganai branch. These funds are used to monitor environmental safety, work on the mercury lamp demercurization and environmental measures of the water area.
Oil Spill Response - An Example of Effective Management
An example of concern for environmental safety is the elimination of pollution caused by the accidental discharge of petroleum products in September 2010. In the shortest possible time with the implementation of all norms of regulatory and supervisory authorities, the consequences of the discharge were eliminated. A subsequent audit of the Dagestan department of Rosprirodnadzor and the Dagestan branch of the Center for Laboratory Analysis and Technical Measurements in the Southern Federal District issued positive instructions for the analysis of works on eliminating emissions.
All the work of the RusHydro energy company and its branch (Irganai Hydroelectric Power Station) is subordinated to increasing the reliability of the units and guarding the station and minimizing the risk of equipment failure. Renewal of the company's assets, both energy and professional, is the station’s priority areas of work.