LAHORE: The much awaited Neelum Jhelum hydropower project faces atechnical set back as the commercial operation of the unit no. 4 of theNeelum- Jhelum Hydropower Project (NJHP) has been delayed for about nextfour months after the experts identified some technical issues in themachine during various tests and sought replacement of some parts.
The NJHP’s unit-4 had started trial generation last month and it continuesto pass through various tests required for commercial operation. The unithas injected more than 1.3 million units of electricity during test run.
“However, during the tests of this unit, the “run outs” exceeded thespecifications. The consultants of the project concluded that for operationfor its designated life, its “labyrinth” and “lower sleeve” should bereplaced with new ones, for which the contractor has placed the order onthe manufacturer namely Harbin China. This unit is scheduled to go intooperation in next three to four months,” explains a spokesperson for theWater and Power Development Authority.
On the other hand, following completion of reliability test and adjustmentsthereafter the NHJP’s first unit started generation on Friday, providingelectricity to the national grid. The unit will contribute 242.25MW powerto its installed capacity to the system for one month (reliability period)after which its commercial operation will commence.