Hodonín power plant in Czechia now cooled by fan-assisted cooling towers instead of water

The ČEZ power plant in Hodonín, which generates electricity and heat from biomass, has switched to a new cooling system following several months of testing. The system will cut its cooling water consumption by 97 percent, or 57 million cubic metres. ČEZ announced the news in a press release.

Until now, the power plant used once-through cooling, which made it significantly more dependent, especially in summer, on the flow of the Morava River, from which it drew cooling water. Restrictions also included temperature and volume limits on returning used water to the river or to the so-called Teplý járek.

The condensers of units TG3 and TG4 are now cooled by an Israeli system using closed-loop circulation technology with a fan cooling tower. The tower measures 30 by 30 metres, and each cell is equipped with a fan unit 11 metres in diameter with seven blades.

„Thanks to this solution, the cooling towers will not rise above the level of the main power plant halls, making them almost invisible to most residents of Hodonín. At lower temperatures, only water vapour rising from the cooling tower will be visible. But, of course, ensuring the power plant’s stable operation and saving water are far more important,“ said Jiří Ševčík, CEO of ČEZ Energetické služby.

The Hodonín power plant has been burning biomass since 2009, consuming more than 400.000 tonnes a year. It generates 400 TJ of heat and 300 million kWh of electricity annually, enough to meet the needs of 90.000 households in South Moravia.