A giant tunnel over a kilometre long has been completed as part of work towards building a major new hydro energy storage facility.

The tunnel towards the proposed underground powerhouse is a key stage in the £100 million pumped storage hydropower plant that would almost double the UK's existing electricity storage capacity.

The proposed Coire Glas project at Loch Lochy in the Great Glen would have an installed capacity of 1,300 megawatts (MW) and be capable of delivering 30 gigawatt hours (GWh) of long-duration electricity storage.

It would provide renewable power for three million homes for up to 24 hours, and be the largest UK hydropower energy site in the UK for 40 years.

Pumped storage hydropower projects work by using the flow of water between reservoirs and lochs to drive turbines.

There is an underground powerhouse plannedThere is an underground powerhouse planned (Image: SSE Renewables)

SSE Renewables said the tunnel will allow the project team to gather accurate information on the geological conditions to inform the detailed design for the main works.

Read Scott Wright's story here

Plans for thousands of homes at famous Scottish steelworks site

 

Proposals to clear a massive former industrial site across an area of land “with scope to provide over 2,000 homes” have been lodged.

The application covers the remediation of land in the centre of Ravenscraig which equates to approximately 20% of the site.The application covers the remediation of land in the centre of Ravenscraig which equates to approximately 20% of the site. (Image: Ravenscraig Ltd)

The major planning application covers 200 acres of land in the centre of the historic former steelworks site.

A proposal of application notice has been submitted to North Lanarkshire Council for the extraction and remediation works of land at Ravenscraig, moving the regeneration of the former steelworks into its next phase.

Read Brian Donnelly's story here

Scottish green energy firm secures largest hydrogen power deal in its history

 

Hydrogen power specialist Logan Energy has won a multi-million pound contract to fuel a fleet of zero emission buses in the Czech Republic.

Read Kristy Dorsey's story here

The exact value of the contract was not disclosed but is said to be Logan's largest order since it was set up in 2005The exact value of the contract was not disclosed but is said to be Logan's largest order since it was set up in 2005 (Image: Logan Energy)

Edinburgh-based Logan will supply equipment to a Czech Republic contractor, ČEZ ESCO, that will see ten hydrogen buses carrying passengers around the town of Mníšek pod Brdy, located 20 miles south-west of Prague, by the end of 2025. Using hydrogen produced via hydroelectric power, it is the country's largest hydrogen project.

Edinburgh-based Logan Energy will engineer, manufacture, supply and maintain the complete package of equipment for the project. This includes electrolysers to convert municipal water into hydrogen, storage tanks, compressors, fuelling system and key turnkey contractor services.