Dalmally
An open day was held at the Lochy hydro project near Dalmally. The rather damp day did not deter people from coming along and, given that it was perfect hydro weather, it was quite appropriate that waterproofs and wellies were the order of the day.
The event gave people the chance to see all aspects of a hydro power installation and kicked off with a short introduction from hydro sales manager Mathew Crosher on the key points of the scheme.
The Lochy project is a 2MW classic medium-head, high-flow scheme incorporating a large single intake, large-bore pipeline and two dissimilar Gilkes Francis turbines installed in a new purpose-built powerhouse.
Gilkes first became involved in the project in 2010, following Gilkes Energy’s intention to develop the scheme on the national forest estate which is managed by Forestry Commission Scotland. The scheme started generating in July 2016.
The scheme is adjacent to the Eas a Ghail powerhouse which is a 1.5MW scheme utilising a twin jet pelton turbine, which was also open for viewing.
During the day both the Gilkes and Gilkes Energy teams were on hand to answer questions while guests had access to the powerhouse, along with guided tours up to both intakes.
Caterer Claire Cameron provided bacon rolls and hot soup to warm everyone up after the trips up to the intake and there was an added surprise with entertainment from the Lomond and Clyde Pipe Band.
To sign up for the 2018 open day mailing list visit www. gilkes.com/event-signup.