A century old hydro scheme has been brought back into operation to power one of the great castles of Scottish history, using the original pipe.

 

The scheme was originally commissioned at the 13th century Blair Castle in Highland Perthshire in 1908, but was de-commissioned in 1951 after the arrival of the National Grid.

But the re-commissioned scheme will now generate enough energy to power the castle, home to the Dukes of Atholl and their seat as chiefs of Clan Murray, while offering both financial and environmental benefits to the estate and surrounding area.

Atholl Estates decided to re-visit the original hydro scheme to see if there was a way to develop an income stream to offset the increasing costs of maintaining Blair Castle, where both Mary Queen of Scots and Queen Victoria visited and stayed, 280 years apart.

Now fully operational, electricity bills for the castle are a thing of the past with the energy supply now enabling the building to be self-sustaining as well as environmentally friendly in the process.

A full consultancy team of hydro engineers , environmentalists and electrical specialists started construction of the re-commissioned hydro in 2014. After approaching Gilkes, the manufacturers of the original 1908 turbines, and extensive specialist testing, the project team discovered that the original pipe from 1908 was still in good working order. It had been full of water and continually in use since 1951 for the castle fire hydrant system.

The team constructed a new intake and the existing powerhouse was refurbished with a new Gilkes 84kW turbine. Now, at full design flow, 331,200 litres of water pass through the turbine every hour.

As a Green Tourism Gold Award winner, it was important to Blair Castle that the hydro scheme was efficient, but also kind to its natural surroundings. Jamie Troughton, husband to Sarah Troughton who is the head trustee of Atholl Estates, led the project team and explained:

"We put a great deal of thought into how to refurbish the old power house. The turbine generates about 85 decibels when it is running so, with the help of acoustic engineers at the design stage, the internal lining of the power house's brick shell was designed to contain all the noise to ensure that the building is completely soundproof. This is a feature of which we are very proud."

The project team also painted the external brickwork of the powerhouse in 1940s camouflage paint acknowledging Blair Castle's historic connections with British wartime history. There is also a viewing window into the power house for castle visitors.

Blair Castle was not the first house great house to be powered by hydro. In 1863 industrialist and inventor Lord Armstrong, built Cragside, in Northumberland which became the first property in the world to have its electricity supplied by a hydro scheme.

The first hydro-electric scheme to provide power was built by the monks at Fort Augustus Abbey in 1890. While just up the road, the first large-scale commercial hydro-electric scheme in the UK, used to power an aluminium smelter at Foyers on Loch Ness.

Minister for Business, Energy & Tourism Fergus Ewing formally reopened the Blair Castle Scheme and said:

"This hydro-electric scheme is a prime example of how businesses can make sustainable use of their natural resources without adversely affecting our stunning Scottish landscape, while also creating, for themselves, a positive commercial advantage. Their efforts are to be highly commended and it is projects like Blair Castle's hydro-electric scheme that places Scotland at the leading edge of green tourism."