Drax to develop new 600 MW hydropower station in Scotland

Drax Group, a renewable energy company, starts the planning process for the construction of a new underground pumped storage hydropower station with an energy capacity of 600 MW at Cruachan facility in Scotland. 

The new project, knowns as Cruachan II, will be located inside Ben Cruachan – Argyll’s highest mountain, and together with the existing 440MW Cruachan pumped storage hydro station will increase the site's total capacity to 1.04 GW.  The station will be built within a new, hollowed-out cavern that would be large enough to fit Big Ben on its side. To create the cavern and other parts of the power station, Drax will need to excavate more than a million tonnes of rock. The upper reservoir has the capacity to serve both Cruachan I and II power station. It can hold up to 2.4 billion gallons of water. 

Will Gardiner, Drax Group CEO, said: “This is an exciting and important project which underlines Drax’s commitment to tackling the climate crisis and supporting the energy system as it continues to decarbonise. Our plans to expand Cruachan will unlock more renewable electricity to power homes and businesses across the country, and support hundreds of new jobs in rural Scotland.”

During construction, the project will provide nearly 900 jobs in rural areas across Scotland and will secure the critical storage capacity required to support a net zero power system. Cruachan II will provide lifeline stability services to the power system while acting like a giant water battery. The new station will be able to generate enough power for around 1 million homes. The local community can check early-stage proposals for the 600MW Cruachan II and ask questions starting from July 1, 2021 here.