Innovations

Innovative Development Program of RusHydro Group

for 2020 - 2029 with a vision to 2024

The main document that determines innovative development of RusHydro Group is Innovative Development Program of RusHydro Group for 2020 - 2029 with a vision to 2024 (hereinafter Group IDP).

The Group IDP was developed in accordance with the decision of the Government Commission for the Modernization of the Economy and Innovative Development of Russia, chaired by the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev (minutes of the meeting dated 22.10.2018 No. 2), based on the guidelines approved by the Interdepartmental Commission on Technological Development under the Government Commission for Economic Modernization and Innovative Development of Russia, minutes dated October 25, 2019 No. 34-D01.

The Group IDP was approved by the Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East (letter dated December 18, 2019 No. KTs-03-18/13770), the Ministry of Energy of Russia (letter dated June 03, 2020 No. PS-6240/02), the Ministry of Education and Science of Russia (letter dated January 16, 2020 No. MN-2 / 27), the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia (letter dated March 13, 2020 No. D01i-8069) and approved by the Interdepartmental Working Group for Technological Development under the Government Commission for Economic Modernization and Innovative Development of Russia (Minutes dated June 01, 2020 No. 8-D01).

The Group IDP was approved by the RusHydro Board of Directors on August 20, 2020 (Minutes No. 312).

The Group's IDP is a long-term planning and management document integrated into the strategic planning and development system of RusHydro Group and includes the following key performance indicators (KPIs) that are part of the integral key performance indicator of the Group's innovation activities:

№	KPI	Planned KPI volumes
№	KPI	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024	2029
1	Share of R&D expenditures from revenue, %	0.25	0.25	0.25	0.25	0.25	0.25
2	Number of intellectual property objects received per year, pcs	18	19	20	21	22	27
3	HPP capacity management efficiency *, person/100 MW	21.99	21.97	21.97	21.93	21.89	21.51
4	Fuel utilization ratio,%	49.0	49.1	49.4	49.6	50.0	51.3

* This indicator is "inverse", that is, a decrease in its value demonstrates an increase in efficiency

The main goals of Group IDP

1. Increasing economic and operational efficiency of RusHydro Group companies through the introduction of innovative technical and management solutions aimed at:

improved service life and productivity of equipment;
development of technologies to improve the reliability and efficiency of equipment operation;
improvement of the quality of equipment diagnostics and proactive identification and elimination of production risks;
increased productivity;
reduced dependence on imported equipment and import substitution;
reduced negative impact on nature.

2. Ensuring compliance of the Group's technological level with the level of leading global and domestic energy companies, including:

development of efficient technologies of construction, repair and reconstruction, as well as the operation of generating assets;
development of technologies in the field of on-line monitoring of the condition of main equipment;
development of automation of equipment maintenance and repair processes;
development of new innovative products based on the accumulated knowledge and experience of the Group (for example, in the field of electric energy storage, development of infrastructure for electric transport).

3. Increasing energy efficiency of production and transportation of electric and heat energy (including reduction of expenses for auxiliaries and losses in networks).

4. Developing clean energy sources, including developing unrealized and used hydropower capacity in certain regions of the Russian Federation, as well as developing alternative power industry based on renewable energy sources.

Long-term and medium-term technological priorities

for innovative development

Development of technologies for automation of technological processes and remote control of facilities.
Improvement of methodology, tools and reengineering of business processes for managing electric power industry facilities.
Application of new materials, equipment and technologies at electric power industry facilities.
Digital transformation.
Reduction of negative impacts on the environment.
Development of a risk-oriented model of management of electric power industry facilities based on its technical condition.

Groups of key and priority technologies for innovative development:

Unit (1) “Technologies selected based on the results of comparison with leading peer companies” (technologies by which RusHydro Group was found to be behind peer companies):

BIM-technologies (building information modeling).
Modern methods of computational hydrodynamics (methods for studying and modeling fluid flows based on data analysis and using specialized software).
Technologies for preserving fish population (development of fish pass structures and fish protection measures, fish-safe equipment).
Remotely controlled unmanned underwater vehicles and autonomous unmanned underwater vehicles (robotic vehicles controlled remotely by the operator for conducting inspections of the underwater parts of hydroelectric power plant structures for verifying their condition for fractures, contamination, etc.).
Acoustic monitoring systems (technology for detecting mechanical phenomena in rotating equipment based on collection and processing of a large amount of data; artificial intelligence based on machine learning).
6FA turbines (construction of generating capacities based on 6FA gas-turbine plants).
Automation and digitalization of power grids (devices for real-time monitoring and control of power supply systems, in particular, generation and transmission systems).
Generation using wind energy (using modern wind turbines to convert kinetic energy of the moving air into mechanical energy of the rotor rotation, and then into electricity).
Generation with use of solar panels (use of special panels with cells, consisting of two layers of different semiconductor materials (for example, silicon), by means of which shine light is converted into electricity).
Pumped storage power plants (a type of power plant that is used to equalize the inhomogeneity of the electrical load curve).
Gravity storage sinks (TAES) (technologies for accumulating mechanical/potential energy).
Online monitoring of partial discharge of equipment (technology for detecting defects at an early stage in the insulation of electrical equipment).
IoT data collection platforms and digital substations (ecosystems that include applications for the operation of technologies and analytics, development of service strategies, generation of secure communication systems, intelligent data exchange between facilities of the Internet of Things, resolution adopting recommendation interfaces, other analytical tools and cybersecurity modules).
Decision-making support systems and digital twins (a computer model that reliably describes all processes and relationships both at a separate facility and within a whole production asset in the form of virtual units and simulation models), inter alia, using artificial intelligence.
Application of composite materials (materials made of two or more components with different physical or chemical properties, which, when combined, produce a material with improved parameters compared to substitutes in the form of separate materials).
Technologies of virtual and augmented reality (generation of three-dimensional computer simulation using special electronic equipment).
Predictive analytics/service using remote monitoring (discovering hidden relationships between events based on statistics and thus predicting future events).
Unmanned aerial vehicles in operation and maintenance processes (automation technology for detecting lesion with drones).
Virtualization of computing resources (running several operating systems on one server, while each of the specimens of such guest operating systems operates with its own set of logical resources).

Unit (2) “Technologies, the level of which development in RusHydro Group is comparable to that of similar companies” (development of which is necessary to maintain the level of technological development of RusHydro Group):

Automated instrumental systems for measuring water flow through turbines, spillway and culverts of hydroelectric power plants (HPPs).
Application of mathematical modeling of river basin runoff to optimize flood and high water pass regimes, increase the efficiency of HPPs water-energy treatments.
Remote control of HPPs with an installed capacity of 50 MW or less.
Integration of systems for monitoring the state of hydraulic structures with the upper level of HPP PCS.
For high-pressure hydropower facilities erected in difficult engineering and geological conditions, the combination of monitoring systems with digital predictive models of the stress-strain state of structures as part of software and hardware systems.
Application of enclosing structures and watertight elements made of clay-cement bored piles for earthfill dams up to 60 m high.
Use of hydraulic engineering soil structures of geosynthetic materials in drainage and filtering elements (return filters), which prevent the removal of soil particles from the body of structures.
Application of reinforcing composite materials in repairing water conduits and hydropower facility structures.
Use of hydro turbines which design ensures minimum impact on aquatic biological resources.
Application of automated systems for monitoring and diagnosing the state of hydraulic turbines providing a transition to repairs based on technical condition.
Application of gates and trash grates made of new construction materials.
Use of coatings for hydromechanical equipment that prevent biofouling.
Use of anti-icing coatings for mechanical equipment.
Installation of recuperation systems in variable frequency drives.
Application of heating systems for industrial premises utilizing heat removal from cooling systems of hydraulic units and transformer equipment.
Application of automated systems which monitor and diagnose the TPP main equipment providing a transition to on-condition repair.
Application of advanced technologies for boiler equipment, including:
- application of technology of anti-abrasive protective coating of the fuel supply and dust preparation path;
- application of technological systems that provide the opportunity of additional disposal of waste gas heat;
- introduction of technical solutions to ensure combustion of an extended range of coals in the boiler;
- modernization of existing gas boilers to use them as a boiler unit for a CCGT cycle;
- introduction of systems for automated control of the combustion mode in the boiler;
- introduction of technical solutions or modernization of existing boilers that provide solid waste combustion in the boiler;
- introduction of the systems without fuel oil firing of boilers;
- application of an automated system for technical diagnostics of heating surfaces.
Application of advanced technologies for turbine equipment, including:
- construction of new gas-fired power plants using a steam-gas cycle based on domestic technologies;
- o use of power units based on class F gas turbines;
- o application of a technology of using wear-resistant coatings on the working blades of the last stages of steam turbines in order to reduce erosive wear;
- o use of automated systems that implement the functions of monitoring and diagnostics of turbine equipment at TPPs.
Using combined units of a low reagent system of water treatment plants, countercurrent ionization, membrane desalination.
Application of advanced technologies for auxiliary equipment, including:
- application of dry ash handling system;
- integration of auxiliary equipment ACS into the PCS upper level;
- application of a system for automated measurement of fuel consumption when designing the construction and reconstruction of TPP, technical refurbishment of solid fuel fuel supply systems;
- application of systems for centralized pulverization of coal fuel;
- application of “coal plant - without ash dump” process charts;
- application of technologies that provide ash dump with the properties of secondary products of fuel combustion, allowing their long-term safe storage in open sites and further beneficial use.
Application of a complete contour for the development of thermal resources as part of GeoPC using domestic technologies of secondary boiling and binary cycles.
Application of automated autonomous generating plants using low-grade heat sources based on domestic technologies.
Application of geothermal field continuous monitoring systems with integration into the PCS.
Generation technologies using wind energy (wind turbines with a horizontal-axial rotor, gearless, equipped with a lightweight installation system or self-lifting, with a prefabricated modular foundation).
Solar energy-based generation technologies (use of double-sided photovoltaic modules, photovoltaic modules with an efficiency of more than 20%).
Application of gas piston units operating on coal gasification products, biogas.
Application of hybrid energy complexes using renewable energy sources and energy storage systems and an automated generation control system in areas of decentralized energy supply.
Advanced small-HPP technologies, including:
- application of pre-fabricated structures (including those erected without a pit), structures made of thin-walled and prefabricated reinforced concrete, structures using composite and geosynthetic materials;
- application of labyrinth unregulated weirs;
- application of electromechanical linear drives in control systems of hydraulic units;
- application of factory-equipped HPPs power generation container units with an installed capacity of 5 MW and less;
- installation of HPPs with an installed capacity of 5 MW or less on process pipelines and hydraulic systems in places where there is concentrated differential pressure (head);
- application of wind power plants and solar battery modules as part of the HPP production complex in order to increase the efficiency of renewable energy facilities.
Application of automated modular solid fuel boilers.
Application of automated modular electric induction heating boilers.
Technologies that provide digital data exchange between relay protection and automation devices, communication and accounting systems, allowing remote control of the operational state and operating mode of electrical network equipment, as well as monitoring its technical condition.
Application of DC-based technologies for linking isolated power regions and transmitting electricity over long distances
Advanced overhead line technologies, including:
- use of insulated wires for 110 kV overhead lines;
- use of high-temperature wires on lines with a large current load;
- use of wires with increased resistance to the adhesion of wet snow and ice;
- use of systems for monitoring and diagnosing the state of 110 kV and higher overhead lines, including using a fiber-optic cable placed on the overhead line (built into lightning protection cable or phase wire);
- development of technologies for non-destructive test of condition in order to ensure transition to repair based on overhead line technical assessment without taking them out of service, monitoring the current state of overhead lines, inter alia, using the unmanned aerial vehicles;
- introduction of robotic systems moving along the wires of overhead lines to lubricate the wires with water-repellent grease;
- application of automated systems for early detection of ice formation and distributed control of the optical fiber temperature when melting ice on a ground wire and a phase wire with a built-in fiber-optic cable and direct control of the wire temperature during ice melting;
- application of linear fittings made of non-magnetic materials;
- application of snow-repelling rings on overhead lines 6.10-35 kV, preventing the adhesion of snow to the wires;
- application of vapor-liquid thermosyphons (thermal stabilizers) in order to maintain the frozen state of the soil in the bases of the supports;
- application of (cable-air) elements of fault location by sections for mixed PTL.
Compact standard terminals of domestic production, implementing the minimum required set of functions and signaling, used at substations without permanent presence of the operating personnel.
Application of non-metallic pipes (polymer, composite fiberglass and glass-basalt).
Application of in-line diagnostics of pipelines of heating networks using magnetic particle inspection for detecting the state of the pipeline metal.
Application of chimney stacks made of polymer composites at thermal power plants and boilers.
Advanced operational-dispatching office technologies, including:
- remote (tele-) control of switching devices and functions of relay protection and automation devices from DC and NCC, as well as monitoring of the state of relay protection and automation devices from DC and NCC, including:
- organization of scheduled switching at new generation substations according to automated programs and switching forms;
- transfer to HPPs remote control with an installed capacity of 50 MW or less;
- coordinated operational-technical control over technological mode and operational state of the generating equipment of the HPPs cascades located on artificial watercourses;
- creation of software and hardware for information support for operational-technical control functions;
- automation of operational record-keeping function;
- use of automated systems for resolving optimized operation of power grids and power plants.
Application of methods for monitoring and diagnostics of generators, power transformers and Swg devices, ensuring the transition to on-condition repair.
Application of an excitation system with an opportunity of mobile replacement of power thyristors on operating equipment (withdrawable thyristor bridges or thyristor units).
Use of phase-shifting transformers allowing for regulation of power overflows.
Use of maintenance-free oil drying system in transformers (autotransformers).
Use of switch-disconnectors.
Use of compact shielded gas insulated modules combining a switch, a disconnector, current measuring transformers (for installation on an outdoor switchgear) in one body.
Use of switches with other types of insulation (CO2, N2, etc.).
Use of optical and electronic current and voltage transformers, including combined (integrated) current and voltage transformers.
Advanced relay protection and automation device technologies, including:
- use of digital exchange of measurements, status and control signals between relay protection and automation devices, digital current and voltage transformers;
- automation of calculations of emergency mode parameters, selection of settings and algorithms for operation of relay protection and automation devices;
- development and use of information system for automation of planning and accounting processes for relay protection and automation device maintenance;
- use of WAMS for assessing correct operation of emergency and operational automation, monitoring and diagnostics systems of the main and auxiliary equipment;
- introduction of software and hardware systems that increase accuracy of determining locations of lesions on PTL;
- elaboration of principles for development and use of adaptive relay protection and automation systems capable of changing the settings and schemes of their output effects depending on the scheme and mode of the network and equipment of isolated power systems and regions;
- automatic assessment of the relay protection and automation devices functioning;
- control over switching devices and implementation of software interlocking as part of relay protection and automation devices during new construction of production facilities;
- application of protections allowing to implement integral overload parameters of power equipment specified by the manufacturer;
- implementation of remote control of operating modes of relay protection and automation devices (input/output of individual protection stages, switching of groups of settings, etc.);
- implementation of device set efficient control (RUSA) systems at generating facilities for feasibility study;
- implementation of automatic reception of planned dispatch schedules and dispatch commands from the DC of SO UES JSC, and their utilization for generating a GRAM group task;
- use of GRAM means for automated maintenance of the required HPP regulation range: start/shut-down of hydraulic units, their transfer to different zones (if any) of the adjustment range, provided that the hydraulic units are equipped with technological automation and protections which ensure implementation of all the restrictions provided for in the operational documentation of the hydraulic units, and perform similar functions in absence of RUSA.
Use of Ethernet network to provide digital data exchange between relay protection and automation devices.
Transition from use of numerous frontiers of engineering and physical means of protection to application of innovative technical means of blocking and preventing penetration into the Group facilities.
Creation of technical security equipment systems and complexes allowing to reduce influence of the human factor on operation of systems.
Establishing of the systems of early detection, warning and response systems.
Creation of the systems of underwater object detection and non-lethal counteraction.
Advanced PCS technologies, including:
- implementation of the PCS upper level utilizing cluster solutions in a virtual computing environment;
- construction of PCS regulatory and reference information at the levels of the process bus and the station bus based on data structures in accordance with the requirements of IEC 61850 series “Networks and communication systems at substations”;
- use of applied programming interface (API) in accordance with the requirements of IEC 61970/61968 series for communication of software and hardware complexes of the PCS upper level and PCS applications;
- application of smart sensors and intelligent devices for pairing with the facility;
- implementation of PCS with verification of the operational parameters of the main and auxiliary equipment and monitoring of their amendments in real time following by issue of a predictive and analytical assessment of the equipment state and recommendations for changing operational and technical restrictions.
Advanced technologies for dispatching and technological control, including:
- application of batch data transmission technologies in organization and reconstruction of communication channels for the supervisory control system;
- prioritization of delay-critical data types through implementation of mechanisms to assure quality of service (QoS);
- multiservice provision - concurrent transmission of all types of traffic (voice, data, video) over the network;
- use of single unified solutions for stationary services, including telephone communication for operational negotiations, and mobile telephony, loudspeaker communication, video surveillance based on organization and development of multiservice switching and access nodes;
- use of active redundancy technology in organizing supervisory control system redundancy.
Advanced AIMS EPFA technologies, including:
- application of LoRaWAN data transmission technologies in electricity retail market AIMS EPFA, LTE based machine communication for data transmission from electricity meters directly to the computer computation complex without use of intermediate routers;
- application of data collection and processing in the computer computation complex of the electricity retail market AIMS EPFA with an opportunity of information interaction with the computer computation complex of adjacent and/or downstream systems for commercial metering of electricity based on IEC 61968 series standards.

Development of electric charging infrastructure

The report on developing the electric vehicle market and electric charging infrastructure in the Far East was prepared by RusHydro Group and contains an analysis of the main trends in the development of the electric vehicle market in the Far Eastern Federal District based on the existing experience of RusHydro in the field of charging infrastructure.

The report contains the main indices of the network of RusHydro charging plants for 2019-2020 and the consolidated information obtained as a result of a survey conducted in September 2020 among the clients of RusHydro ECP.