Cruachan Power Station

The power station is on the A85 road, about west of Dalmally, on a branch of Loch Awe leading to the River Awe, which is the outflow from the loch, at its north west corner. There is a seasonally open Falls of Cruachan railway station nearby. ==History==

Construction commenced in 1959, and the power station was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 15 October 1965. The concept was designed by Sir Edward MacColl, who died before it opened. At the peak of the construction, there were around 4,000people working on the project. The cost of the scheme was . Cruachan is pre-dated by the smaller Lünerseewerk (de) (Austria, 1958) and the Ffestiniog Power Station (Wales, 1963). It is one of four pumped storage schemes in the United Kingdom. Its construction was linked to that of Hunterston A nuclear power station, to store surplus night-time nuclear-generated electrical energy. The power station was originally operated by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board, before being transferred to the South of Scotland Electricity Board. Maintenance of the penstocks, which formerly required them to be drained, is now done using a remotely operated underwater vehicle. ==Design==

The Cruachan station temporarily stores energy at times of low demand, and releases it at times of high demand, when electricity prices are higher, Despite the use of some rainwater, Cruachan is not a net generator of electricity: it uses more energy for pumping water and spinning its turbines than it generates. Around 10% of the energy from the station is generated from rainwater; the rest is from the water pumped up from Loch Awe. It can go from standby to full production in twominutes, or 30seconds if compressed air is used to start the turbines spinning. The power station is required to keep a 12-hour water supply in order to provide a black start capability to the National Grid, to enable utilities to be restarted without access to external power. In June 2021, Drax applied to build a further 600MW pumped storage system using the same reservoir, to a combined 1GW for seven hours of storage. Approval was granted in July 2023, and Drax intended to complete the project in 2030. Several financing modes are possible for the £500M project. Seismic surveys began in June 2024. In May 2025, Drax put the expansion on hold citing rising costs of the project. Turbine hall There are four Francis turbines, which operate as both pumps and generators. These are housed in a cavern within Ben Cruachan, which is long, wide and high, with an adjacent transformer hall. The chamber is at a depth of around , and is within a hard granite intrusion. Construction of the power station required the removal of of rock. The transformers step up the voltage from 16kV to 275kV for transmission. After passing through the turbines, the water enters a surge chamber designed to balance fluctuations in the level of water before entering the tailrace tunnel to Loch Awe, which is in diameter and long. The reservoir has a catchment area of , Environmental restrictions meant that the dam had to have a "clean" appearance, so the operational equipment is housed within the dam wall. The penstocks underwent a major inspection and refurbishment in 2003. ==Tourist attraction==

The power station was listed by the conservation organisation DoCoMoMo as one of the sixty key monuments of post-war Scottish architecture. A visitor centre, refurbished in 2009, is sited by the outflow to Loch Awe and receives around 50,000visitors a year. The power station houses a three-section modernist mural in wood, plastic and gold leaf by English artist Elizabeth Falconer. The mural includes Celtic crosses, pylons, mythical beasts, and men of industry. The first section depicts the mythical Cailleach Bheur, who guarded the spring underneath the mountain. The middle panel commemorates 15 workers killed when the roof of the turbine hall collapsed, and the final section shows the station working. ==Popular culture==

In the Disney+ Star Wars series Andor episode six "The Eye", the Cruachan Power Station appeared as the Empire's supply hub on the planet Aldhani. The dam was also featured in the season 7 episode 5 "Singapore" of the series Outlander. == References ==