The Hricov water project is situated on river km 245.0 near the village of Horný Hricov as a river dam from which a 28.41-km-long derivation canal starts.
The purpose of the water project is water management, mainly daily balancing of flows, electricity generation and in the future also navigation between Povazska Bystrica and Zilina. The total useful head of the cascade is 47 m, rated electricity generation capacity 183.3 MW and average annual electricity production is 355.2 GWh. The guaranteed duration of the peak hours is 4.3 hours a day.
The dam and the dam-type functional object create a water reservoir with a total volume of 8.467 million m3, of which reserve volume accounts for 6.394 million m3 and permanent volume for 2.073 million m3. The backwater extends for 6.00 km and the maximum inundated area is 2.53 km2.
The earth damrises 9.5 m high above the bottom of the valley and up to 19.0 m above the footing bottom. Its crest is 651.0 m long. The dam is built of sandy gravel and its slope gradient is 1:2. The maximum thickness of the dam at the bed reaches 48.4 m and its crest width is 10.4 m. The dam has an oblique clay seal on the water side. The waterside slope is reinforced with 25-m concrete slabs resting on loose rock. Between the clay seal and the concrete slabs is a gravel filter.
The dam, which is a functional object, consists of four fields dammed by bi-segments 19.4x10.3 m in size with a capacity of 3,800 m3.s-1. Three fields discharge 2,770 m3.s-1 of water. The movements of the segments are synchronized on both sides by an electric axle whose driving equipment is housed in sheds on piles. Dam pillars are pre-stressed against shear by steel ropes anchored in bedrock. Auxiliary damming is made of steel plates.
The hydroelectric power plant. The power plant's engine room houses three vertical turbines with a throughput of 68 m3.s-1 and half-sunk umbrella-shaped generators. The engine room is in a steel hall with three blocks and an assembly area. The power plant also has a control room with remote control equipment to operate the Miksova and Povazska Bystrica hydroelectric power plants. The power plant object has six wattless outlets 2,800 mm across with a combined capacity of 426 m3.s-1.
Characteristic parameters of hydroelectric power plants (see table)
Information & Contact:
Research Institute of Water Management,
Nabr. arm. gen. L. Svobodu 5,
811 02 Bratislava,
tel.: 00421 (2) 59343111,
fax: 00421 (2) 54415743
