On Thursday we were given the privilege to tour the Glendoe Site - the first Hydro Scheme in Scotland for almost 50 Years.
We were all met at the Base Camp by Richard Appleby & after an Health & Safety Briefing, Richard outlined the project, followed by a site tour.
Overview
The construction of Glendoe Hydro Scheme, near Loch Ness, is the biggest civil engineering project currently underway in Scotland. Like most projects of this nature & scale, which are few & far between, it is utilising an experienced international team, with expertise from four continents involved.
We were all met at the Base Camp by Richard Appleby & after an Health & Safety Briefing, Richard outlined the project, followed by a site tour.
Overview
The construction of Glendoe Hydro Scheme, near Loch Ness, is the biggest civil engineering project currently underway in Scotland. Like most projects of this nature & scale, which are few & far between, it is utilising an experienced international team, with expertise from four continents involved.
Glendoe’s prime purpose will be the generation of electricity, with its turbine able to produce up to 100MW of energy, enough to power every home in a city the size of Glasgow. It will have the highest head – the drop from the reservoir to the turbine – of any hydro station in the UK, allowing it to generate more energy from every cubic metre of water than any other facility in the country. Furthermore, it will be the UK’s most efficient hydro electric scheme, using water as its fuel to avoid the production of carbon dioxide, a gas associated with global warming.
Reservoir and Dam
Glendoe is an ideal location for hydro electric power as it allows water to be collected in a reservoir very high in the hills above the power station. The more rain there is, the more power a hydro electric station can generate, so it’s a good thing that the average annual rainfall in the hills around Glendoe is about 2000mm, compared to under 700mm in Edinburgh. Water from an area of 15 square kilometres will drain naturally into the reservoir, and a system of underground pipes and tunnels will gather water from an additional area of 60 square kilometres in the surrounding hills.
Glendoe is an ideal location for hydro electric power as it allows water to be collected in a reservoir very high in the hills above the power station. The more rain there is, the more power a hydro electric station can generate, so it’s a good thing that the average annual rainfall in the hills around Glendoe is about 2000mm, compared to under 700mm in Edinburgh. Water from an area of 15 square kilometres will drain naturally into the reservoir, and a system of underground pipes and tunnels will gather water from an additional area of 60 square kilometres in the surrounding hills.
The reservoir will be formed by the construction of a 905 metre-long dam on the River Tarff. The dam will be long and low, with a maximum height of 35 metres for a short stretch in the river valley. It will be constructed from a combination of rock produced by the construction of the Aqueduct Tunnel, and from a quarry opened up adjacent to the dam, which will be flooded by the eventual impoundment of the reservoir. The reservoir side of the dam will be coated with concrete, with the exposed face being natural rock. As a further sign of the project’s environmental sensitivity, the reservoir and dam will not be visible from any home or public road.
Tunnels
Glendoe’s network of tunnels is extensive - the system will be served by over 16 kilometres of these passageways. An 8.6 kilometre tunnel 4.6 metres in diameter will collect water and bring it to the reservoir while 8 kilometres of tunnels 5 metres in diameter will channel water from the reservoir to the underground power station, and out into Loch Ness. In addition, a 1250m long Access Tunnel, 7 metres in diameter, will lead to the power station cavern.
Perhaps the most impressive piece of machinery used in constructing Glendoe is the enormous tunnel boring machine (TBM). The 200 metre-long machine, named Eliza Jane by local schoolchildren, entered the hillside in summer 2006 and is set to emerge around two years later having created eight kilometres of tunnels.
Glendoe’s network of tunnels is extensive - the system will be served by over 16 kilometres of these passageways. An 8.6 kilometre tunnel 4.6 metres in diameter will collect water and bring it to the reservoir while 8 kilometres of tunnels 5 metres in diameter will channel water from the reservoir to the underground power station, and out into Loch Ness. In addition, a 1250m long Access Tunnel, 7 metres in diameter, will lead to the power station cavern.
Perhaps the most impressive piece of machinery used in constructing Glendoe is the enormous tunnel boring machine (TBM). The 200 metre-long machine, named Eliza Jane by local schoolchildren, entered the hillside in summer 2006 and is set to emerge around two years later having created eight kilometres of tunnels.
Power Station
The actual power station will be housed in an underground cavern 250 metres below ground level, and located roughly 2 kilometres from the banks of Loch Ness. The cavern is 38 metres long, 18 metres wide and 32 metres high. Contained within it will be the turbine, which is turned by the force of the water flowing through it, and the generator, which converts that force into electrical energy. A separate, smaller cavern will also be located adjacent to the power station cavern. It will house the main station transformer.
The actual power station will be housed in an underground cavern 250 metres below ground level, and located roughly 2 kilometres from the banks of Loch Ness. The cavern is 38 metres long, 18 metres wide and 32 metres high. Contained within it will be the turbine, which is turned by the force of the water flowing through it, and the generator, which converts that force into electrical energy. A separate, smaller cavern will also be located adjacent to the power station cavern. It will house the main station transformer.
One of the important benefits of hydro power is that it can be switched on very quickly to meet sudden increases in the demand for electricity. Under the right conditions, Glendoe will be able to reach full output in just 30 seconds.
Breakthrough!
Breaking into daylight again after 15 months of tunnelling through the heart of the mountain, the massive TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine) arrived at its final destination ahead of schedule. Drilling of the main tunnel commenced in September 2006 and in the almost non-stop drilling the TBM has travelled from the banks of Loch Ness upwards through the mountain, drilling a 5m diameter tunnel through solid rock for over 5 miles, climbing over 600m in height.
Massive congratulations to everyone in SSE and our contractors on this great achievment. Job done!
Breaking into daylight again after 15 months of tunnelling through the heart of the mountain, the massive TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine) arrived at its final destination ahead of schedule. Drilling of the main tunnel commenced in September 2006 and in the almost non-stop drilling the TBM has travelled from the banks of Loch Ness upwards through the mountain, drilling a 5m diameter tunnel through solid rock for over 5 miles, climbing over 600m in height.
Massive congratulations to everyone in SSE and our contractors on this great achievment. Job done!
Timeline
January 2006
Start of Site Works
Planning for the Glendoe project began as far back as October 2001. The first formal construction work at the site occurred over four years later, in January 2006.
September 2006
Start of Power Tunnel TBM
The main Power Tunnel connects the reservoir to the Power Station, before eventually carrying on to Loch Ness. Preparation for the construction of this giant passageway, including blasting and drilling, began in Autumn 2006.
January 2007
Completion of Main Access Tunnel
The Main Access Tunnel, which provides admission to the Power Station, is due to be finished within the first month of 2007.
January 2008
Completion of Power Tunnel
Having taken its first tentative cuts at the first rock face in late September 2006, the tunnel boring machine (TBM) is scheduled to complete its endeavours in the Power Tunnel many months later, with the entire tunnel planned to be finished well over one year later, at the beginning of 2008.
June 2008
Completion of Tailrace Outfall
By early summer of the same year, the outfall from the 2km tailrace tunnel (which manoeuvred the TBM towards the creation of the main Power Tunnel, beyond the Power Station) will be accomplished.
August 2008
Completion of Dam
The long and low 905 metre-long dam on the River Tarff is scheduled to be finished in late summer 2008.
November 2008
Completion of Cavern & Plant Installation
The underground cavern, complete with the Power Station turbine and generator, will be concluded and ready for action by the time winter draws in at the tail end of 2008.
March 2009
Start Generating
In early spring of the following year, the Glendoe project is expected to start creating its first power.
November 2009
Completion of Landscaping and Reinstatement
By the end of 2009, the project will be complete, including landscaping and final reinstatement work.
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Nice picture, I did not know the lovat had a new uniform :)
ReplyDeletelove, karin