EDINBURGH, Scotland
CRF Hydro Power Ltd., a Scottish hydro developer and operator, has
completed negotiations with Clydesdale Bank Plc. to receive US$5.83
million to rehabilitate and upgrade the Garbhaig small hydroelectric
project from 915 kW to 2 MW. The scheme is located in a rural area on
Loch [Lake] Garbhaig in the Scottish Highlands in the Wester Ross area.
Construction
started on the original project in the Slattadale Forest during 1988.
The project became partially operational in 1991, and additional
construction continued until the project was completed in 1993,
according to reports. The scheme will comprise a weir and inlet on Loch
Garbhaig, with water traveling through a 1,500-meter-long underground
penstock to the powerhouse immediately above Victoria Falls. After
harnessing the flow, a tailrace will return water used for generation to
Abhainn Garbhaig, a short river that flows from Loch Garbhaig to nearby
Loch Maree.
As part of the rehabilitation and upgrade, the Garbhaig powerhouse is
being relocated downhill. Developers said moving the powerhouse
downhill will allow generating capacity to more than double, providing
enough electricity to power approximately 1,800 homes. An exact date of
completion for the project is not immediately available.
1-MW Merk hydroelectric project
Clydesdale Bank support will also help CRF Hydro and its three
partners: MEG Renewables; the Richard Grubb Family, who co-own the
Garbhaig project with CRF Hydro; and Here We Are, a local community
organization. Together, the groups will develop the 1-MW Merk project in
Glen [Valley] Fyne, which is scheduled for commissioning later this
year.
The scheme is being constructed at an estimated cost of US$5.3
million and is expected to deliver 3.3 GWh per year using water from the
River Fyne near the village of Cairndow in the Argyll and Butte Council
areas. Water from the 2.57-square-kilometer catchment area is expected
to provide enough flow to the powerhouse to generate at its maximum
designed capacity for about four hours.
The catchment area is at the top of Loch Fyne and is divided into two
parts. In the upper portion of the catchment area, two leats (manmade
watercourse systems) will supply water to the intake of a small header
pond from its 360 m height. Water will flow from the header pond through
a penstock, south to the powerhouse.
The lower portion of Loch Fyne catchment area will utilize a second
set of leats and route water from its intake through a second penstock
that connects to the header pond penstock. During generation cycles,
water from both penstocks will send flow to the powerhouse. During
non-generation cycles, operators will divert water at the intersection
of the second penstock from the second portion of the catchment area to
refill the header pond. The Merk powerhouse is at the base of the catchment area hill and its tailrace returns all water to the River Fyne.
http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2015/02/a-combined-us11-1-million-will-finance-two-small-hydroelectric-projects-in-the-scottish-highlands
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