Star Wars Day: Force is strong at Drax's Cruachan Power Station

It’s Star Wars Day and the Force is strong at Scotland’s Drax owned Cruachan Power Station.

The so-called Hollow Mountain, Ben Cruachan, in Argyll and Bute, was carved out to host the facility and recently made the jump to hyperspace-level fame thanks to its starring role in the Disney+ Star Wars TV series Andor.

It appeared as the Empire's supply hub on the planet Aldhani.

Today Graham Walker shines a lightsaber on the iconic location as the 60-year-old power station sparkles celebrating its diamond anniversary.

In episode six of Andor, titled The Eye, eagle-eyed fans might recognise the rugged, otherworldly terrain of the Scottish Highlands and the looming silhouette of a dam straight out of the Galactic Empire’s design playbook.

That’s no CGI – that’s the 316-metre-long Cruachan Dam, standing like a Rebel fortress against the landscape.

The surrounding moorlands and the underground lair of the power station itself were used to bring the planet Aldhani to life on screen.

But that was science fiction. The science fact is even more out of this world. Forget green screens, real power flows at Cruachan Power Station.

It generates up to 440 megawatts of electricity in seconds – enough to power almost 1 million homes at lightspeed.

This marvel of futuristic power tech is more than worthy of Jedi status. It's a real-life Force for good.

A long time ago, in a galaxy not so far away the mountain was hollowed out not by Jedi or Sith, but by Scottish engineers wielding something just as powerful as the Force - hydroelectric innovation.

Cruachan, built between 1959 and 1965, is one of only four pumped-storage hydroelectric power stations in the UK, buried one kilometre inside solid granite, behind a massive tunnel entrance that looks ready to launch X-Wings at any moment.

Inside it’s more spaceship hangar than power station. With towering turbines, echoing tunnels, and flashing lights, it's no wonder Lucasfilm scouts saw it as an ideal Star Wars location.

It was a jaw-dropping concept; an underground power station carved into the heart of a mountain. The first reversible pumped storage hydro system in the galaxy.

At 118ft high and nearly 300ft long, the size of a football pitch and high enough to house the Tower of London, the cavernous machine hall is home to its four water powered generators.

It was bought in December 2018 by renewable energy company Drax and is one of just four pumped storage hydro stations in the UK.

Pumped storage is one of the oldest forms of large-scale energy storage, requiring two reservoirs based at different altitudes, but close to each other.

Sitting on Loch Awe, Cruachan fits the bill perfectly and as the home to one of the wettest areas in Europe, it is a prime location.

Cruachan stores energy by pumping water from Loch Awe up to a reservoir nestled 396 metres above sea level.

When demand surges, like when everyone makes tea during a Star Wars TV ad break, water is released from the upper reservoir, through a turbine and into the lower reservoir.

The flow rotates the turbine which in turn rotates a generator to produce power. Electricity from the grid can then be used to drive the turbine in the opposite direction, to pump water from the lower reservoir back up into the upper reservoir.

It provides extremely quick back-up during periods of excess demand by maintaining stability on the National Grid.

Cruachan can reach full load in 30 seconds and can maintain its maximum power production for more than 16 hours if necessary.

It can also help solve intermittency issues with other forms of renewable power, that is, when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine.

For these reasons, Cruachan was awarded a six year contract to keep the electricity system stable stable, by providing services such as inertia and reactive power.

Construction involved the excavation of 220,000 cubic metres of rock and soil with around 1,500 workers employed at the peak of this major civil engineering project.

The reservoir has a storage capacity of 10 million m³ of water and a catchment area of 23km².

It’s also a Jedi masterclass in sustainability.

As the grid fluctuates with renewables like solar and wind, Cruachan steps in to balance it – literally storing energy for a rainy day...or, in Scotland, just another Sunday.

If the Empire had Cruachan, the Death Star might’ve run on renewable energy.

Drax is currently upgrading units 3 and 4 at Cruachan Power Station. With increasing need for clean, flexible power, this mountain of might could become even more vital in the galactic battle against climate change.

The project will increase the power station’s generating capacity by almost 10%, enabling it to power an extra 90,000 homes.

It comes at a critical time for the UK’s energy system.

The UK Government has set an ambition for a clean power system by 2030 that will see wind and solar energy become the backbone of the electricity system. Pumped storage hydro power stations, like Cruachan, will play a critical back-up role when the sun doesn’t shine, and wind doesn’t blow.

Mike Wynd, Drax’s Head of Hydro, said: "While we celebrate the 60th anniversary, we will be starting a major upgrade of the power station. The centrepiece is a major refurbishment of Cruachan’s generating units 3 and 4 – the machinery which creates electricity as water rushes through its turbines. The units were commissioned in 1965 and contain parts, including their turbines, some of which are now 60 years old.

“The refurbishment is expected to take around three years with approximately 100 contractors on site, and we’re actively working to use local companies where we can.

"We will be replacing the huge valves that control the waterflow through the turbines. Each valve weighs as much as three double decker buses, and in a minute can allow enough water to flow through to fill an Olympic swimming pool.

“Plus, we will be installing a new transformer, which transfers electricity from the station to the grid and, from there, into TVs, kettles, offices and factories".

So this May the 4th, while you're rewatching Andor or dusting off your droid collection, raise a glass of blue milk to Cruachan Power Station – where science fiction meets science fact and where Scotland’s own Hollow Mountain reminds us that some of the most incredible forces in the galaxy are right here in Scotland.

* Want to walk in the footsteps of the Rebellion? The Cruachan Visitor Centre is open for visitors but tours inside the mountain itself are suspended while the Upgrade Project takes place. Visit at www.visitcruachan.co.uk.