Abstract
Pumped
hydroelectric storage (PHS) is the most established technology for
utility-scale electricity storage. To take investment decision for the
development of small hydropower projects, technical feasibility and financial
viability are considered to be the foremost requirements. The
cost of electro-mechanical equipment means a high percentage of a small
hydro-power plant budget (around 30 % and 40 % of the total sum). It seems from
this importance of the determination of that cost, which could directly
influence the project feasibility. An overview of existing methods to estimate
the cost of hydro turbines is presented in this paper. Empirical formulas to
estimate the cost of centrifugal pump for a power ≤ 2 MW and PAT (pump as
turbine) for a power ≤ 550 kW. In addition, new correlations have been
developed to estimate the cost of hydraulic turbines (Pelton, Kaplan, Francis
and Francis reversible) for a power > 2 MW were developed through
statistical analysis of cost data obtained from pumps and hydraulic turbines
manufactures. The
cost of EM equipment increases for high power levels but it decreases for high
head.