Moscow, 13 October 2003. The Task Force of RAO "UES of Russia" for the preparation for the launch of the second hydro generator at Bureyskaya HPP held a meeting today to discuss a progress report on the construction of the power plant. It was stated, among other things, that the installation of the second hydro generator is complete, so is the second unit transformer.

It is anticipated that the generator will start no-load operation on 21 October 2003 and will be synchronized with the Unified Energy System on 30 October. Upon completion of full-scale testing, the generator will be ready for production operation. The second generator with a changeable turbine wheel will have the capacity of about 170 MW.

The Task Force noted that, over the first nine months of 2003, the annual target for concrete placement has been exceeded by 10%. The dam is now 208 meters high, with the reservoir filled to 206 meters, which will ensure the launch of the second generator and uninterrupted operation of Bureyskaya HPP during the autumn/winter period.

Significant progress has been achieved in the construction of the third hydro generator, which is scheduled for launch in December 2004. Installation of the principal parts of the generator, the rotor and the stator, is now underway.

The first power-generating unit at Bureyskaya HPP was put into operation on 30 June 2003. To date, the power plant has generated 263 million kWh of electricity. To generate such amount of electricity, thermal power plants would need to burn 85 thousand tons of coal.

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