Photo caption: Affric-Beauly team members from left to right: Roddy MacLean, Craig MacDonald-Haig, Kacper Mlodzianowski, David MacCuish, Kevin Judge, David Ross, Rory Coyne, Calum Trick, John Smart, James Cameron, Jimmy Fraser, Gilbert Skinner, Kevin Sutherland, Kenny McLennan, Graham MacDonald, Duncan Murray.
Situated within the Affric-Beauly Hydro Scheme, about 10 miles to the west of Inverness, our Fasnakyle Power Station is celebrating seven decades of delivering renewable energy in the Scottish Highlands today.
Opened by Prince Philip on 13 October 1952, Fasnakyle Power Station is the oldest and largest in the Affric-Beauly cascade, with a generating capacity of 69MW.
At the time of opening, the station had three 22MW Francis turbines. These were added to in 2005, with a fourth 7MW unit, and again in 2021, with a small 50kW set.
Ian Love, Hydro Field Operations Manager, comments said:
“It is without question a special milestone in the history of Fasnakyle, and one which everyone past and present should be extremely proud of. Hydro power is Scotland’s original source of renewable energy and one which has an increasingly vital role to play on our path to achieving net zero.
“As we move towards an electricity system with ever greater levels of intermittent forms of renewable energy, hydro’s ability to store its main fuel source, water, and its flexibility to generate power when required will be increasingly important to the National Grid.”
Peter MacInnes, Hydro Operations Area Manager said:
“It’s a testament to the commitment and hard work of the Operations and Maintenance teams throughout the years that sees Fasnakyle reaching such an impressive milestone in the history of hydro power in the Highlands.
“The pride and dedication with which our teams operate and maintain our incredible assets will ensure Fasnakyle continues to play a significant role for many years to come in powering the glens.”
Find out more about the Affric-Beauly Hydro Scheme here.