Hindustan Construction Company will execute civil and hydromechanical works to restore the operation of the Salal Dam gates in India.
Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) secured a contract valued at ₹524.17 crore from NHPC Limited to rehabilitate infrastructure at the Salal Hydroelectric Power Plant, located in Jammu and Kashmir, India. The agreement has an execution period of 27 months.
The award focuses on civil and hydromechanical works aimed at restoring the functionality of the concrete dam’s lower sluice gates. The scope also includes auxiliary works necessary to return these systems to fully operational conditions.
Rehabilitation of the Salal Hydroelectric Power Plant
According to project information, the intervention will improve the sediment management capacity within the dam. This aspect is relevant for maintaining the hydraulic performance of the facility and reducing problems associated with material accumulation.
Additionally, the works aim to increase operational efficiency and strengthen the infrastructure’s safety conditions. The rehabilitation also seeks to sustain the dam’s reliability during its long-term operation.
The analyzed HTML precisely highlights these three axes: restoration of discharge structures, sediment management, and improvement of the plant’s operational safety.
HCC returns to a plant it helped build
Furthermore, the contract marks HCC’s return to the Salal hydroelectric project decades after its initial involvement in its construction.
The plant has an installed capacity of 690 MW and began operation in 1987. The new intervention allows the construction company to work again on a facility linked to its history in hydroelectric infrastructure in Jammu and Kashmir.
Likewise, the award expands HCC’s presence in energy projects developed to harness the water resources of this region of northern India.
HCC’s hydroelectric experience in Jammu and Kashmir
The company has also participated in other hydroelectric facilities in the region. These include Uri-II, with 240 MW capacity, Kishanganga, with 333 MW, Nimoo Bazgo, with 45 MW, and Chutak, with 44 MW.
Together with Salal, these projects total 1,352 MW of installed capacity. According to information provided by HCC, this figure is equivalent to approximately 38% of Jammu and Kashmir’s installed hydroelectric capacity.
The company’s experience in the area also extends to transportation. HCC has been involved in the Anji Khad cable-stayed railway bridge and approximately 32 kilometers of tunnels corresponding to the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla railway link.
With the new NHPC contract, attention will now focus on restoring the Salal Dam’s discharge systems and improving its operational performance in the coming years.
Source: Water Power
Photo: Shutterstock
