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Expertise
Since 1985, when the firm carried out its first hydropower study and commissioning, ENCO has been involved as consulting engineer in more than 60 projects in Italy, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Mozambique, Bosnia Herzegovina and Armenia:
- More than 60 realized SHPPs currently working, for a total amount of more than 170 million €
- Four Feasibility Studies of 4 HPP with seasonal basin, 450 million €
- Pipeline of feasibility studies/designs of SHPPs, including some 10 to 17MW capacity projects
- Two Studies of hydro potentiality at a regional level: Bosnia Herzegovina and Armenia (in consortium with Sogin and Decon)
ENCO’s consulting services include:
- Site identification and investigation, data collection, flow rate analysis
- Pre-feasibility with preliminary economic and financial viability study
- Hydrological, geological and topographic surveys
- Feasibility study and final design, turbine type and EIA study
- Follow-up to obtain the necessary permissions and licenses including CDM qualification
- Detailed design and supervision of works
- Assistance to the licensee at tender stage and for the whole construction process
- Assistance to the licensee during the operation of the project
- Advice to Lenders for technical due diligence
It’s common for adduction systems of drinking water to present huge heads and high pressure that needs to be reduced. A valuable solution to operate pressure reduction, given the available head and flow, is the placing of an in-pipe turbine which will generate energy: a solution that is also particularly cost effective since all necessary major infrastructures are already present within the adduction system and only limited civil works are needed.
When a good head is available, gravity distribution is used. The reservoir has to be located at a sufficient elevation above the pertaining area to grant sufficient pressure for the water to reach every part of the distribution system and its dimensions should allow to smooth the fluctuation of water use during the day thus optimizing the turbine’s efficiency.
Usually, it’s necessary to build a small powerhouse (in some cases it can be built on of the reservoir) but overall, installation and small civil works do not interfere with the distribution of the flow rate. The generator unit and regulation system are evaluated and designed in accordance with the available head and flow rate from the intake.
The water used by the turbine can be discharged in the reservoir and used since its quality isn’t affected.
In the event of an interruption of the installation, the flow to the aqueduct is granted by a by-pass. The transition from the turbine to the by-pass must be carefully evaluated and planned in order to avoiid damaging the upstream pipeline. For this purpose, the system as a whole shall allow for upstream pressure regulation and control.
The generating system with the automation, regulation and control auxiliaries must be able to provide all the operating guarantees without affecting in any way the regular operation of the aqueduct.
Sometimes a turbine based on a modified pump can also be utilized. This reverse pump is directly inserted in the pipe and the whole installation can take place in a chamber realized inside the load reservoir. The low cost of this solution may be of some interest, however the efficiency is very low
ENCO carries out Technical, Economical and Financial Evaluation in-house, has deep knowledge of technical, administrative, accounting and the management to increase the efficiency of the plant.
In 2019, ENCO successfully studied a project of a solar based mini grid in Mozambique.
ENCO adopts customized systems to find the best solution for the Client, from the begin of the project up to the monitoring the real-time power production of plant.
Solar power department ensures the fastest data analysis and business plan evaluation.
Thanks to collaborations with important research centers and partnerships with worldwide leading suppliers, ENCO is able to guarantee:
- High Quality
- Engineering of early stage, preliminary and final design
- Coordination of Civil and Electrical Works
- Guaranteed Performance and Efficiency
- O&M supervision services after commissioning
In over 30 years of experience ENCO has gained a huge experience in sewerage and wastewater treatment, including as relevant reference the detailed design and tender documents for a Wastewater Treatment Plant in the city of Ain-Témouchent, in Algeria.
The project, funded by the World Bank, has been completed in 2012 and nowadays is fully operational. ENCO is now the selected consultant for the upgrade and expansion of various plants in Italy.
ENCO is an appreciated consultant for the restoration and upgrade of municipal aqueducts. Some of ENCO’s most relevant references are the extension of the water supply systems of Paderno del Grappa and Pederobba-Cavaso-Possagno, in Italy.
The consultancy for small hydropower plants in existing aqueducts has been one of the important services requested by the water authorities during the last years.
ENCO’s team is highly skilled in hydrological, hydrogeological and hydraulic evaluations and assessments, key aspects of the engineering design of structural and non-structural interventions for water resources and hydrogeological risk management and mitigation.
ENCO works in close collaboration with local Authorities, especially within the Dolomites region in northern Italy, where the hydrogeological risk is considered high and where, during the last couple of years, extreme weather phenomena have caused severe damage and the worsening of hydrogeologic instability conditions.
ENCO provides hydrologic design, management of river basins and water resources as well as hazard assessments and mitigation works, granting support to clients during each phase, from feasiblity to supervision of works.
ENCO has been involved in some Cooperation and Development Projects and it had the chance of designing and executing, from scratch, a vast irrigation system in Tanzania.
Hombolo Irrigation Project has been designed by ENCO in 1996, a view of the system is illustrated by the picture on the right.
Waterworks’ mode of operation is analysed using EPANET, an open source pipe flow modelling software, implemented by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Hombolo Irrigation Project has been designed by ENCO in 1996, a view of the system is illustrated by the picture on the right.
Waterworks’ mode of operation is analysed using EPANET, an open source pipe flow modelling software, implemented by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Design of buildings is based on the knowledge of construction practice and standards, on innovation of structural modelling and drawing tools and on expertise and skills of engineers and architects.
ENCO guarantees all of these features while providing a punctual and precise schedule of the construction process.
Building engineering design and works are realized in close, ongoing cooperation between the Architect and the Builder to guarantee a compliance between construction drawings and architectural ideas which is a crucial task.
ENCO’s engineers work with of up-to-date software based on the finite elements method, that allows structural analysis to be carried out in an integrated graphic system.
In seismic areas, a modal analysis of the structures is always performed.
The efficacy and reliability of the software selected by ENCO, allow for the successful design of any kind of structural system, regardless of the geometric complexity, variety of building materials and load combinations.
ENCO puts exceptional attention in dealing with this aspect and other key steps to a successful project implementation, such as:
- Punctual estimation of costs
- Detailed construction schedules
- Advanced software, GIS technology
- Outstanding precision and integration between survey results, technical documents and construction design
- Attention towards environmental issues and financial constraints
ENCO’s consulting services include: