The construction of the Bureya Hydroelectric Power Station began in 1932 when the Gidroproyekt Institute conducted reconnaissance and exploration work in the Bureya area. In 1969, the Lengidroproekt Institute, proceeding from its plan of comprehensive use of the river, initiated design and research work and started compiling technical documentation for the building of the Bureya hydroelectric facility. The first construction crew arrived at the site for the Talakansky dam in 1976. They were assigned with preparing the site, creating a road and building the first houses. Building and assembly work began on the Bureya dam in 1982 when the first cubic metre of concrete was laid in the foundation. However, the beginning of construction coincided with economic decline in the country, and construction was suspended in the late 1980s and abandoned in the mid-1990s.
It was not until the late 1990s that construction was resumed. The first power unit was launched in 2003. The second was put in commercial operation in December of that year. All the power units were successively launched on schedule and the station reached design capacity in 2010.
The Bureya dam is a concrete gravity dam. It rests on the river bedrock and holds the mass of water collected by the reservoir with its own weight. About 4 million cubic metres of concrete went into the dam. The dam weighs about 15 million tonnes and can withstand high water pressure, and it is 140 metres high. Since it is located in a narrow canyon, its length is only 736 metres. The high pressure created by the dam can drive its six turbines. The Bureya power station's installed capacity is 2,010 megawatts, and it can produce more than 7 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year.
The seismic activity in the area is rated at 8 points according to current standards. Therefore some constructive elements have been put into the dam to make it more stable during seismic events.
The part of the dam where water is released is shaped like a ski-jump with sloped surfaces on the left and right which deflect the flow to the centre. The impact of the discharged water mass on the left bank and the supporting plates of the separation wall is diminished due to the mutual suppression of the energy of the streams. The surface water discharge has the capacity of handling 11,000 cubic metres of flood water a second.
The reservoir is the key element of the hydroelectric facility. It has a volume of 21 cubic kilometres (with a normal water level of 256 m). It accumulates the floodwater for further use to hydraulically produce energy.
The Talakansky Canyon on the Bureya River is an ideal location in terms of minimizing damage to the natural surroundings and generating energy in the most effective manner. Most of the water reservoir is located in the canyon-like stretch of the river, so the flooded area is not large. The surface is a mere 740 sq km when the water level in the reservoir is normal.
Prior to the building of the dam, catastrophic floods on the river occurred about once every ten years. Now floodwater accumulates in the Bureya reservoir and then is released gradually during the year.
The Bureya Hydroelectric Power Station belongs to the first category of facilities, considering the height of the dam, the presence of human communities downstream, the geological structure of the foundation and the seismic activity in the area. The Equipment and Hydroengineering Structures Monitoring Service constantly monitors the situation at the Bureya Hydroelectric Power Station.
The service currently conducts geodetic, seismological and seismometric monitoring, telemetric and filtration control of external influences on the facility using a complex of measuring instruments located in the body of the dam.
At present, the Eastern Power Grid, which is separated from the Unified Energy System, has two hydroelectric power stations, on the Zeya and Bureya Rivers. When the Bureya power station hit full capacity, the Eastern Power Grid's share in total energy generation reached 36%.
Power from the Zeya and Bureya stations plays a key role in stabilizing electricity tariffs (the cost of electricity generation at the hydropower stations is much lower) and in regulating capacity in the Amur Region and in the south of the Khabarovsk Territory.
With the launching of the Bureya Hydroelectric Power Station and three new long-distance power transmission lines, the Eastern Power Grid becomes a balanced and self-contained energy system that fully meets the region's energy needs and has good prospects for further development. Hydro energy generation in the Eastern Power Grid fully meets the traditional function of the system - regulating peak and semi-peak loads.
The system's balance reduces the dependence of the Primorye Territory, the Khabarovsk and Amur Regions on supplies of fossil fuels and extends the lifespan of the thermal power stations.
The generation of electricity at the Bureya power station saves 5.2 million tonnes of coal or 4.7 billion roubles every year.
Bringing the Bureya Hydroelectric Power Station to full capacity is important, and not only for the reliability and safety of the energy system. The project created the conditions necessary for regional development and the improvement of its social and economic situation. The completion of the station has created up to 10,000 jobs, brought more than 1 billion roubles in taxes to the budgets of various levels and contributed to the development of the infrastructure in the region.