The US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation has awarded GE Power Systems a $3.8 million contract for a generator refurbishment project at the Grand Coulee hydropower plant in Washington State. The dam is located on the Columbia river in central Washington. Comprising three power plants – Left, Right and Third – it supplies an average of 21 000 GWh each year to the Pacific northwest region of the USA. The dam was started in 1934 and completed in 1942 whiled the Left and Right powerhouses, each with nine generators, were put into service between 1941 and 1950. GE will supply two identical 125 MVA, 13.8kV generator stator cores and windings for the refurbishment project. One stator core will be installed and commissioned by GE at the Left Powerhouse G7 unit. The second is planned for future installation at another powerhouse unit. The new stators will comprise Twintone-insulated bar windings which will be built at GE Hydro in Lachine, Quebec, Canada. Shipping to the site will begin in January 2003. Installation is expected to be completed by the third quarter of 2003 and the unit is due to return to commercial operation in February 2004.
