Kaplan turbines
Customized, highly reliable solutions optimized for a wide range of discharges and heads.
Litostroj provides state-of-the-art Kaplan turbines designed to meet today's demanding operational requirements.
Our Kaplan turbines are double-regulated machines equipped with variable-pitch blades and regulated guide vanes.
This design makes them hydraulically optimized and highly adaptable for a wide range of discharge and head conditions.
With an engineering lineage tied directly to the inventor of the turbine himself, we deliver complete solutions from development and design to final delivery.
Operational parameters
Turbine type
Vertical Kaplan turbines
The traditional, highly robust configuration utilizing a vertical shaft, which seamlessly accommodates generators with large inertia.
Application Focus:
Preferred for large-scale units requiring significant power output and flexible operation across a wide range of discharges and heads.
Turbine type
Bulb & pit and S-type turbines
Compact, horizontally or inclined-mounted units. Bulb units utilize intensively cooled generators to join the turbine and generator into one compact package , while Pit turbines position the generator in an easily accessible flow-passage pit for simplified maintenance.
Application Focus:
Perfectly suited for harnessing water energy at low heads (1.5 m to 25 m) and medium to high discharges, achieving outputs up to 50 MW.
Turbine type
Saxo and vertical tubular turbines
Innovative hybrid and low-head solutions. The Saxo-type is a compact hybrid of Bulb and Kaplan technology in a vertical tubular arrangement , while S-types feature a distinctive draft tube and an externally mounted generator.
Application Focus:
Highly cost-effective green energy production requiring less civil works (excavation and concreting) than traditional Kaplans. Ideal for heads up to 45 m and power generation up to 30 MW.
Turbine type
Propellers
A highly streamlined, fixed-blade variation of the classic Kaplan turbine. By eliminating the blade pitch adjustment mechanism, these turbines offer incredible structural simplicity and robust operation.
Application Focus:
Engineered specifically for installations where only small variations in water flow are expected. This configuration is particularly strategic and cost-effective for hydropower plants equipped with four or more units of the same type.
References
Our Kaplan turbines on the grid
Core features
What makes the Litostroj Kaplan turbine state of the art?
We combine a century of hydropower tradition with modern engineering to deliver customized, highly reliable turbines. Here is what sets our solutions apart.
Proven hydraulic excellence
Building upon the original Kaplan turbine concept and decades of hydraulic development, our custom runner profiles are optimized through advanced CFD analysis and model testing. This minimizes cavitation risk and ensures flat efficiency curves, delivering maximum performance under varying operating conditions.
Eco-friendly hub solutions
Manufactured entirely in Europe , our advanced runner mechanisms are designed to meet strict environmental standards.
Our innovative oil-free hub variants—available as environmentally friendly fluid-filled or entirely empty—completely eliminate the risk of waterway contamination.
Smart control & maintenance
Our advanced governor systems optimize grid frequency primary control while actively reducing runner wear.
Low maintenance cycles and innovative solutions help in reducing the unit downtime
Ready to build your next powerhouse?
Whether you are planning a greenfield installation or need to uprate a century-old turbine, our engineering teams are ready to architect your solution.