Lochaber hydroelectric scheme

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Lochaber hydroelectric scheme
Lochaber hydroelectric scheme
Country
  • United Kingdom
LocationFort William, Scotland, UK
Coordinates 56°49′47″N5°04′13″W / 56.8296°N 5.0702°W / 56.8296; -5.0702
StatusOperational
Construction began1924
Commission date 1929 (refurbished 2008-2012)
Power generation
Units operational5 × 17.3 MW
Make and model Andritz Hydro Francis turbines
Nameplate capacity
  • 88 MW
External links
Commons Related media on Commons

The Lochaber hydroelectric scheme is a hydroelectric power generation project constructed in the Lochaber area of the western Scottish Highlands after the First World War. Like its predecessors at Kinlochleven and Foyers, it was designed to provide electricity for aluminium production, this time at Fort William.

Contents

Water is collected from the River Spean catchment, plus the headwaters of the River Spey and some smaller watercourses. It contains two main reservoirs Loch Treig and Laggan Reservoir, and 18 miles (29 km) of tunnels excavated through the hillside.

The scheme was originally built between 1924 and 1943 by the British Aluminium Company. This company was bought by Canadian-based Alcan in 1982 whcih was subsequently bought by Rio Tinto in 2008. Rio Tinto Alcan then sold the scheme to GFG Alliance in November 2016. [1]

The hydroelectric scheme and aluminium smelter are still in operation.

Scheme Layout

Penstocks carrying water to the aluminium smelter at Fort William; Ben Nevis is in the background Pipelines supplying Aluminium works Fort William - geograph.org.uk - 22776.jpg
Penstocks carrying water to the aluminium smelter at Fort William; Ben Nevis is in the background
Laggan Dam Laggan Dam - geograph.org.uk - 3940.jpg
Laggan Dam
Loch Treig dam from downstream Loch Treig dam - geograph.org.uk - 59492.jpg
Loch Treig dam from downstream

The hydro scheme has a catchment area of 303 square miles (780 km2), [2] including the headwaters of the River Spey, the River Spean and River Treig, and the northern flanks of the Grey Corries and Ben Nevis. There are two principle reservoirs, Loch Treig and Loch Laggan (which was extended as Laggan Reservoir), both with a top water level of about 820 feet (250 m) above sea level. These reservoirs are linked by a 2¾ mile (4.4 km) long, 15 feet (4.6 m) diameter low pressure tunnel, [2] which collects water from three intermediate streams.

From Loch Treig, a main pressure tunnel 15 miles (24 km) long was driven around the Ben Nevis massif. This has a horseshoe shaped cross-section, with an equivalent diameter of 15 feet 2 inches (4.6 m). This tunnel also collects water from a further eleven burns along the way. It was, until 1970, the longest water-carrying tunnel in the world.[ citation needed ] Steel penstocks then convey the water down the western flank of Ben Nevis to the power house below.

Turbines in the power house generate electricity to power the adjacent aluminium smelting plant. The power house and smelter are located to the northeast of Fort William, on the eastern bank of the River Lochy, into which the tailrace discharges.

The scheme was expanded to increase output to meet demand for aluminium in World War II. [3] Floodwaters of the Spey are captured by Spey Dam and diverted via an open cut to Loch Crunachdan then through a tunnel to Loch Laggan. [3] In addition, the River Mashie (a tributary of the Spey) is diverted via an aqueduct and tunnel into the River Pattack, which flows into Loch Laggan.

Construction

The scheme was initially designed by engineer Charles Meik but after his death in 1923, the scheme’s realisation was left to William Halcrow, by then a partner in the firm founded by Meik’s father Thomas Meik.

The project was finally sanctioned by Parliament in 1921, but construction did not start until 1924. Given the scale of construction, it was undertaken in three main phases: [2] [4]

  1. The works to the west of Loch Treig, including the pressure tunnel, intake, powerhouse, and smelter.
  2. The Treig and Laggan dams, plus connecting tunnel and intakes.
  3. The Spey dam, Crunachdan cut and tunnel, plus the River Mashie diversion and Strathmashie tunnel.

A narrow-gauge railway was used in construction and subsequent maintenance of phases 1 and 2, see Lochaber Narrow Gauge Railway for details.

On 30 December 1929, the first aluminium was cast. [5] It took about 95% of the 82,000 kW of power generated. It eventually became part of British Aluminium.

The third phase of construction, the Spey Dam and tunnel plus the River Mashie diversion and tunnel, was supervised by Syril Minchin Roberts a partner in Sir William Halcrow and Partners. It was constructed by Balfour Beatty in 1942/43 with assistance from the Canadian Army. [6] [3] Many of these Canadian soldiers were ex-miners from Kirkland Lake. [4]

Turbine upgrade

In 2008, Rio Tinto Alcan awarded a contract worth €30m for the upgrade of the hydroelectric turbines to Andritz Tech Hydro. [7] This was to replace the original twelve turbines, which were horizontal-axis twin-jet Pelton wheel machines driving two DC generators with a total capacity of 72 MW. [7] [8] Five new horizontal-axis Francis turbines driving AC generators were installed by 2012, [9] each rated at 17.3 MW giving a 20% increase in power output. [10]

Present operation

Fort William Smelter

Following the closure of Rio Tinto/Alcan's other UK smelters at Invergordon (1981), Kinlochleven (2000), Anglesey (2009) and Lynemouth (2012) the hydro-electric scheme and smelter at Fort William was operated by Rio Tinto Alcan. Under threat of closure the smelter was put up for sale in 2016. GFG Alliance, which incorporates SIMEC and the Liberty House Group, as the successful bidder, bought the Lochaber Smelter for £330 million. It announced plans to expand the factory and produce car parts such as alloy wheels. [11] This was later dropped, replaced by plans for a aluminium recycling facility announced in November 2020. [12]

The Alcan Estate

On 3 April 2021, it came to light that the Jahama Highland Estates (formerly the "Alcan Estate") had been purchased in 2016 as part of the Rio Tinto Mines deal for the Lochaber aluminium plant, because the furnace requires so much power that the smelter is located near a hydroelectric plant, which drains the basin of the 114,000 acre Estate. Alcan designed all their smelters that way. The Estate includes the north face of Ben Nevis. According to reports, the Scottish Government mandated that the Estate never be split from the hydro plant and aluminium smelter, but Gupta ignored them and placed ownership of the Estate in a company that is domiciled on the Isle of Man. The 2016 deal was worth £330 million and was guaranteed by the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer. Conservative finance spokesperson Murdo Fraser was critical about the alleged breach of the Scottish Government agreement and urged the Scottish Government to "take whatever steps are necessary to protect public funds". [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

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Fort William is a town in Lochaber in the Scottish Highlands, located on the eastern shore of Loch Linnhe. At the 2011 census, Fort William had a population of 10,459, making it the second largest settlement in both the Highland council area, and the whole of the Scottish Highlands; only the city of Inverness has a larger population.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blackwater Reservoir</span> Reservoir in Highland, Scotland

The Blackwater Reservoir is a reservoir created behind a dam in the mountains above Kinlochleven, Lochaber, Highland, Scotland. The dam is 914 metres (2,999 ft) long, the longest in the Highlands.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loch Treig</span> Freshwater loch, natural, reservoir

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The Lochaber Narrow Gauge Railway was a 3 ft narrow-gauge industrial railway. It was a relatively long line, built for the construction and subsequent maintenance of a 15-mile-long (24-kilometre) tunnel from Loch Treig to a factory near Fort William in Scotland. The tunnel was excavated to carry water for the Lochaber hydroelectric scheme in connection with aluminium production by British Aluminium. The railway came to be known colloquially as the 'Old Puggy Line'.

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References

  1. "Rio Tinto smelter to be sold in deal worth £330m". BBC News. 23 November 2016. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 Halcrow, W T (January 1931). "The Lochaber Warter-Power Scheme. (Includes plates at back of volume)". Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 231 (1931): 31–63. doi:10.1680/imotp.1931.15361. ISSN   1753-7843.
  3. 1 2 3 "MHG55076 - Spey Dam - Highland Historic Environment Record". Highland Historic Environment Record. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  4. 1 2 Cowan, Paul. "Tunnelling for Victory". Scottish Military Disasters. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  5. "Aluminium for Lochaber. Casting of first moulds. Future of the District". The Glasgow Herald. 31 December 1929. Retrieved 28 May 2017.
  6. Cowie, John (March 2011). "Hydropower and panel engineers – a lasting legacy. Part 2". Dams and Reservoirs. 21 (1): 15–30. doi:10.1680/dare.2011.21.1.15. ISSN   1368-1494.
  7. 1 2 "Andritz upgrades Scottish power station". The Engineer. 4 April 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  8. "Major upgrade for aluminium plant". BBC News. 30 January 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  9. "Aluminium smelter in on-site hydro refurbishment". Power Engineering International. 7 April 2008. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  10. ANDRITZ HYDRO Company presentation May 2017 (PDF). Retrieved 13 April 2024 via andritz.com.
  11. "Vehicle parts plant and new jobs planned for smelter". BBC News. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  12. "Lochaber alloy wheels plant dropped in favour of new £94m recycled aluminium facility". Scottish Construction Now. 20 November 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2024.
  13. Gill, Oliver; Millard, Rachel (3 April 2021). "Gupta acquired Scottish hunting estate in taxpayer-backed deal with SNP". Telegraph Media Group Limited.