Gisla Hydro-Electric Scheme
| Gisla Hydro-Electric Scheme | |
|---|---|
 The turbine house of Gisla power station is on the banks of Loch Ròg Beag | |
  Location of Gisla Hydro-Electric Scheme in Scotland | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Location | Isle of Lewis |
| Coordinates | 58°07′40″N 6°52′42″W / 58.1279°N 6.8782°W |
| Purpose | Power |
| Status | Operational |
| Opening date | 1960 |
| Owner(s) | SSE |
Gisla Hydro-Electric Scheme was a small scheme promoted by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board on the Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland. It consisted of a single power station powered with water from Loch Coirceabhat, and was commissioned in 1960.
History
The North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board was created by the Hydro-electric Development (Scotland) Act 1943,[1] a measure championed by the politician Tom Johnston while he was Secretary of State for Scotland.[2] Johnston's vision was for a public body that could build hydro-electric stations throughout the Highlands. Profits made by selling bulk electricity to the Scottish lowlands would be used to fund "the economic development and social improvement of the North of Scotland." Private consumers would be offered a supply of cheap electricity, and their connection to that supply would not reflect the actual cost of its provision in remote and sparsely-populated areas.[3]
The chairman of the new Board was to be Lord Airlie, who had initially been critical of the 1943 Act because its scope was too limited. The deputy chairman and chief executive was Edward MacColl, an engineer with wide experience of hydro-electric projects and electrical distribution networks.[4] It soon became clear that MacColl intended to push ahead with the aspirations of the Act at breakneck speeds. He produced a list of 102 potential sites in just three months,[5] and in June 1944, the first constructional scheme was published. This was for the Loch Sloy scheme, which had a ready market for bulk supplies to nearby Clydeside, but it included two smaller schemes, to demonstrate the Board's commitment to supplying remote areas.[6]
The Gisla scheme was another of the smaller schemes designed to serve remote areas, and was constructional scheme number 34.[7] Johnston wanted to show that the most remote parts of the Board's area would be served, and drove the scheme through its planning stages, despite advice that it would be much better to spend the money on more mainstream projects.[8] Together with the neighbouring Chliostair Hydro-Electric Scheme on Harris, Outer Hebrides, which was built at a similar time, it would bring clean energy to the remote communities on the Isle of Lewis, removing their reliance on diesel generators.[9] The estimated cost at then time the scheme was confirmed by the Secretary of State for Scotland was £210,000, but it would be several years before construction began.[10] The cost per kW installed was slightly less than for Chliostair, but the remoteness of Lewis and Harris meant that the cost was among the highest of the projects built by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board. The costs were estimates, as no work had begun at the time they were quoted.[7]
The scheme involved building a dam across the Abhainn Giosla, about 0.6 miles (1 km) west of Loch Ròg Beag, near the hamlet of Giosla.[11] As the water level rose, it created Loch Coirceabhat, joining Loch More Coirgavat and Loch Beg Coirgavat.[12] A pipeline carries water from the reservoir to the turbine house, located between the shore of Loch Ròg Beag and the B8011 road.[11] Water descends by 154 feet (47 m) from the reservoir to the turbine house[13] and the installed capacity was probably 0.54 MW[14] although OFGEM now quote it as 0.72 MW.[15] The scheme was commissioned in 1960, and produced around 2 GWh or power per year. By 1969, it was operating at a load factor of 42 percent, indicating that it supplied the base load for the communities it served, while the neighbouring Chliostair Hydro-Electric Scheme on North Harris, also completed in 1960, operated at a load factor of 27 percent, indicating that it was used to supply additional power at times of peak demand.[16] Both stations are now fully integrated into the National Grid.[13]
References
- ^ Payne 1988, pp. 50, 298.
- ^ Miller 2002, pp. 19–20.
- ^ Wood 2002, pp. 58–59.
- ^ Payne 1988, pp. 50–51.
- ^ Payne 1988, p. 55.
- ^ Payne 1988, pp. 60–61.
- ^ a b "House of Lord written answers". Hansard. 22 January 1957.
- ^ Payne 1988, p. 312.
- ^ Fleetwood 2010, p. 25.
- ^ "Electricity Boards - written answers in the House of Commons". Hansard. 29 November 1955.
- ^ a b Ordnance Survey, 1:25000 map
- ^ Ordnance Survey, six-inch map, 1888-1913
- ^ a b "Gisla Power Station". Gazetteer for Scotland.
- ^ Payne 1988, Frontpiece.
- ^ "Gisla Power Station". OFGEM.
- ^ Lea 1969, pp. 161–163.
Bibliography
- Fleetwood, David (2010). McDowell, Dawn (ed.). Power to the People: the built heritage of Scotland’s hydroelectric power. Historic Scotland. ISBN 978-1-84917-036-9.
- Lea, K J (March 1969). "Hydro-Electric Power Generation in the Highlands of Scotland". Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers. No. 46. doi:10.2307/621414.
{{cite journal}}:|volume=has extra text (help) - Miller, James (2002). The Dam Builders - Power from the Glens. Birlinn. ISBN 978-1-84158-225-2.
- Payne, Peter L (1988). The Hydro. Aberdeen University Press. ISBN 978-0-08-036584-8.
- Wood, Emma (2002). The Hydro Boys. Luath Press. ISBN 978-1-84282-016-2.
External links
Media related to Gisla hydro-electric scheme at Wikimedia Commons