Chinese Firm to Reconstruct Historic Hydropower Plant in Kyrgyzstan

The state-owned company Chakan GES has awarded a contract to the China National Heavy Machinery Corporation for the reconstruction of the Lebedinovskaya Hydroelectric Power Plant in Kyrgyzstan. The contractor has commenced the preparation of project design and cost-estimate documentation.

The project will involve the replacement of turbines and generators, enabling increased energy production from the existing water flow. The plant’s installed capacity is set to increase from 7.6 to 10 megawatts, and annual electricity generation is projected to rise from 37.2 million to 53.5 million kilowatt-hours. This method of modernization will provide additional generation capacity for the Chuy region without impacting river ecosystems or requiring the inundation of new lands.

Lebedinovskaya HPP is one of the oldest power stations in the region, originally constructed from 1942–1943 to supply electricity to factories that had been evacuated to Frunze – now the city of Bishkek. After eighty years of operation, the plant’s infrastructure has exhausted its service life. The renovation is intended to extend the historical hydroelectric plant’s operational cycle.