Lairg Power Station And Dam
Hydroelectric Power Station (20th Century)
Site Name Lairg Power Station And Dam
Classification Hydroelectric Power Station (20th Century)
Alternative Name(s) Shin Hydro-electric Scheme
Canmore ID 5067
Site Number NC50NE 91
NGR NC 57514 06962
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/5067
- Council Highland
- Parish Lairg
- Former Region Highland
- Former District Sutherland
- Former County Sutherland
NC50NE 91 575 069
Not to be confused with Little Loch Shin, Dam (NC 582 051), for which see NC50NE 92.
For manuscripts relating to the entire Loch Shin scheme see project numbers SA/1950/14/54-56.
Field Visit (2010)
This power station is integrated within the dam which holds back Loch Shin to create the major storage capacity for the Shin scheme. The dam is of gravity type with a fixed spillway and three large control gates. the water level behind the dam is very carefully managed as any flood would totally engulf the village of Lairg which lies directly downstream on the banks of Little Loch Shin. The powerhouse contains a single generator which is powered by the outflow from Loch Shin. The complex is built entirely from coursed rubble and has some baronial influences to the architectural features such as the round stair tower with copper roof and finial. Lairg Dam is a good exampleof an integrated dam and power station and of the design synthesis between modernist and vernacular themes as developed by the North of Scotland Hydro Electric Board (NoSHEB). The power station displays a number of architectural details including carved panels and armorials; a high quality design for the dam and station was important as it is located directly opposite the village of Lairg and makes a significant contribution to the immediate landscape of the village and surrounding area. National Archives of Scotland (NAS), Ref: NSE North of Scotland Hydro Electric Board Collection (1943 -1990); NAS, Ref: NSE1 North of Scotland Hydro Electric Board Minutes (1943-1990); NAS, Ref NSE2 North of Scotland Hydro Electric Board Annual Reports (1943-1990); PL Payne ,1988; E Wood, 2002, 112-13; J Miller, 2002, 105:88918; Scottish Hydro Electric, 2000, 8; J Gifford, 1992, 588; RCAHMS, SA/1950/14/54-56, manuscripts and plans for the Shin Scheme (1960).
Note (25 October 2023)
The Shin hydroelectric scheme
Work began in 1954 on the Lairg dam., a concrete gravity and earth- fill type at the east end of Loch Shin. Lairg power station was built into the dam and employs a vertical Kaplan turbine generating 3.5MW. Out flow is into Little Loch Shin which supplies Shin power station through a tunnel. This station has two horizontal Francis turbines generating a total of 24MW. Cassley power station at the west end of Loch Shin is fed by aqueducts and a tunnel, and produces an output of 10MW. A Borland fish lift is provided at Lairg dam. The scheme was completed in 1960.
Information from NRHE catalogue item number WP007424 compiled by George Walker in 2005.
