Run-of-River Hydro Stations
Run-of River normally entails a small dam (or weir) and diversion of water via a canal or pipeline (headrace) to bring the water to the power station. The water is then fed into a high pressure penstock (or pipeline) which delivers the water under high pressure to the powerhouse, where it drives an installed turbine connected to a generator.
The amount of power a hydro station of this type can generate is dependent on the Head and Flow of the water.
At the outlet of the turbines, the water is discharged back to the river via a tailrace. Spillways are included to allow excess water run-off should the river levels be very high.
To learn more about the components of a Run-of-River Hyrdo Station, please follow this link.
The capacity of the power station is determined by the size of the turbines, and based on the total energy potential of the Head (water pressure) and Flow (quantity of water) of the river. Thus, a power station with 8MW capacity is capable of generating a maximum of 8 MW per hour, although it will seldom run at full capacity, especially during the dry season in the Philippines.
