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Field Visit
Date 2010
Event ID 882028
Category Recording
Type Field Visit
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/882028
Cruachan Power Station is a pioneering example of pumped storage and the first to be built on this scale in the UK. Water is received via pressure pipeline from Cruachan Dam (directly above the turbine hall) which is used to generate power. At periods of cheap electricity the turbines are run in reverse to pump water back from Loch Awe to the reservoir. Ben Cruachan Turbine hall forms and A-group with Ben Cruachan Dam. Ben Cruachan turbine hall is a monumental engineering achievement and an integral part of one Britain’s most innovative hydro electric power schemes and the first example of the use of reversible turbine pumped storage technology. The 3240 cubic metre turbine hall was hollowed out entirely from solid bedrock and is set deep within the side of the Ben Cruachan ridge. The turbine hall is accessed by a 1 kilometre long vehicular access tunnel. The lower end of the tunnel terminates in ‘the crossroads’ where secondary tunnels give access to visitors viewing gallery, transformer hall and surge shaft. The housing of a power station of this scale wholly underground in addition to secondary features such as transformers and pressure tunnels was pioneering and allowed for the development of a power station large enough to play a nationally significant role in energy supply in an area renowned for scenic beauty with very limited visual impact. The station exhibits a number of period design features dating from the 1960s including the timber artwork panel by Elizabeth Faulkner and careful attention to detail in lighting and acoustic design, all with imaginative uses of timber and concrete. 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; E Wood, 2002, 178-79; J Miller, 2002, 230-40; F A Walker,2000, 375.
