Plans to expand our ‘hollow mountain’
A Scotland Office minister has visited the iconic “hollow mountain” Cruachan Power Station to understand its critical role in unlocking Scotland’s renewable power potential.
The hydro facility is set inside a hollowed-out cavern in Ben Cruachan – Argyll’s highest mountain.
Despite construction starting in 1959, its reversible turbines are still at the cutting edge of energy storage technology, enabling the plant to act like a giant water battery.
Its turbines pump water from Loch Awe to an upper reservoir on the mountainside to store excess power from the grid.
Banff and Buchan Tory MP David Duguid also heard more about power plant owner Drax Group’s plans for a major new hydro project.
The firm’s Scottish assets and generation engineering director, Ian Kinnaird, outlined the proposals to build a second underground pumped hydro storage power station at the Cruachan complex.
He said: “The UK has led the world in the transition from fossil fuels to renewable power, and Scotland has been at the forefront of this renewables revolution.
“Drax wants to go even further and unlock Scotland’s full renewable potential by expanding the iconic Cruachan pumped hydro storage plant in Argyll. These innovative plants act like giant water batteries soaking up excess wind and solar power so our homes and businesses can use more green energy when we need it most.”
The construction of a second underground power station at Cruachan would be one of the largest infrastructure projects in Scotland in recent decades.