Korean consortium finish power plant in Uzbekistan

A consortium of Posco Daewoo and Hyundai Engineering & Construction completed construction of a combined cycle power plant in Talimarjan, Uzbekistan, which boasts the largest power production capacity in the country as a single plant, the consortium said Thursday.

A combined-cycle power plant uses both a gas and steam turbine together to produce up to 50 percent more electricity from the same fuel than a traditional simple-cycle thermal plant.

The newly constructed plant is capable of generating 929 megawatts of power, which is roughly 6.6 percent of the energy used nationwide in Uzbekistan.

The combined cycle plant uses two 314 megawatt gas turbines and two 157 megawatt steam turbines to produce power.

“The new plant will help alleviate chronic energy shortage problems in Uzbekistan,” Hyundai E&C said in a statement.

The plant will be used to power up Talimarjan, an area 440 kilometers (273 miles) away from the capital city Tashkent, as well as the southern part of the country.

The consortium won the bid for the plant in March 2013 from Uzbekenergo, the state-run energy authority, at $862 million.

By Kim Jee-hee