Patent ID: 8648487

Claim:
A shaft power plant for generating electricity by energy conversion of a discharge between a headwater and a tailwater, comprising: a vertical shaft, the top of which forms an inflow plane which is parallel to a bed and extends below a water level of the headwater, wherein the shaft is open toward the top and is closed by a base at its bottom end, a unit having a turbine and an electrical machine, wherein the unit is arranged entirely under water in the shaft and wherein the turbine is arranged for water to pass through horizontally, an outflow, which is connected to the turbine, that represents a closed flow channel and leads through a through-passage in the shaft to the tailwater, and a damming structure between the headwater and the tailwater, wherein a horizontal first cross-sectional area of the shaft is much larger than a vertical second cross-sectional area taken up by the turbine runner, further wherein at least one flap that is permanently overflowed is arranged in the damming structure or on a side wall of the vertical shaft.