en.Wedoany.com Reported - European energy company Statkraft has submitted a license application to the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE) to build a new Mår hydropower plant in Rjukan, Tinn, Norway. The new facility aims to increase power generation from approximately 1,140 GWh to around 1,300 GWh, an increase of over 13%. This is Statkraft's largest project investment in Norway in the coming years and part of its NOK 70 billion plan to upgrade and further develop Norwegian hydropower.
The Mår hydropower plant, commissioned in 1948, is nearing the end of its operational life. Statkraft believes the best use of the resource is to excavate approximately 1,000 meters further into the mountain to build a new plant, relocating the intake to the Kalhovd reservoir and the outlet to Tinnsjøen. This design will increase the head height, enabling the plant to produce more power faster during peak demand periods, helping to reduce price spikes.
Pål Eitrheim, Executive Vice President of Statkraft's Nordic region, stated that the Mår hydropower plant has been supplying electricity to homes and businesses since the 1940s, providing power for nearly 80 years, witnessing the evolution from a time when electricity was mainly used for lighting to today, where it is essential for every aspect of daily life, and now an upgrade is necessary.
The existing plant draws water from a large mountain reservoir, which can be discharged into Tinnsjøen, offering favorable natural conditions. The new plant plans to nearly triple the installed capacity from 180 MW to 520 MW. The application also includes an option to further increase capacity in a potential future development phase and build a pumped storage hydropower plant, pumping water from Tinnsjøen to the Kalhovd reservoir to generate electricity when demand is highest.
The construction of the new plant will have positive local impacts but also negative consequences. The project will involve excavating approximately 40 kilometers of new tunnels inside the mountain, generating large amounts of rock that need to be transported and potentially deposited in suitable areas. Statkraft has initiated dialogue with the municipalities of Tinn and Telemark County to explore the possibility of using these materials for beneficial community purposes.
In May, Statkraft announced plans to invest NOK 80 billion in Norway over the next decade. The new Mår hydropower project is one of the largest in the category of upgrading and further developing hydropower facilities, with an investment framework of NOK 9 billion, with a potential additional NOK 5 billion for constructing pumped storage facilities.
