Small, Mini, Micro and Pico Hydro Power Plant: Scope, Challenges &Deployment in Indian Context

Abstract

As per present power crisis small hydro, non-conventional plants may be planned to work during peak
demand. Small hydro is one of the best options for rural electrification which can offer considerable financial benefits to
the individual as well as communities served. It is an attractive alternative to diesel technologies in rural and remote
areas of developing countries as a means of achieving rural electrification. With the advancement of technology it is
possible to harness hydroelectric power efficiently with heads as low as 2 meters. An approach by which multiple micro
scale hydro generating units can be planned over a catchment area consisting of several potential installatio n sites so as
to extract the maximum possible energy per unit investment cost. As a cheap, renewable source of energy with negligible
environmental impacts, small, mini, micro & Pico hydro power technologies have an important role to play in future
energy supply, particularly in developing countries.
Integrated generation and distribution for rural area on fuel availability, small hydro capacity on run -off the river shall
improve the availability and reduce energy cost. The maximum water level below the fal ls, during the record flood is
used as a reference to find standard project flood protection equipment. The purpose of the paper is to develop an
understanding about the various technologies used in the field to study performance of small, mini, micro, pico Hydel
schemes. This study facilitates to take effective measures for reducing the cost which are also given. Usually small hydro
units up to 5 MW are expected to require minimum amount of field assembly and installation work. While machine
having capacity from 5 MW to 25 MW may have slow speed, large diameter and with split generator stator that require
final winding assembly in the field