28 October 2009 - Alstom Hydro has been awarded a EUR178m ($264m) contract to provide four 250 MW variable speed pump turbine and motor generator units for a new pumped storage installation in Switzerland.

The plant's 1000 MW generation capacity will supply enough electricity to power around 1m homes, mainly cover the peak power demand and help to further develop Switzerland's low-carbon power generation peak demand.

The contract with the Kraftwerke Linth-Limmern AG (KLL), a partner of the Axpo AG, the largest producer of hydropower and electricity in Switzerland, and the canton of Glarus, has been booked on the 2nd quarter of the 2009/2010 fiscal year.

This contract covers design, engineering, manufacturing, installation, testing, commissioning and training services. The equipment to be delivered by 2015 will be installed in the new Limmern facility being built in the canton of Glarus, in eastern Switzerland.

A variable speed pump turbine regulates the level of energy the pump turbine consumes, thus giving utilities an even better control over their resources to more easily and efficiently match energy supply to demand.

Variable speed also helps reduce the number of starts and stops and helps to regulate the network frequency or voltage in pumping mode.

These benefits result in improved profitability for pumped storage plant owners, and allow network operators to improve the reliability of the grid as well as the quality of the power supplied to end consumers.