North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board
Encyclopedia
The North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board (1943 - 1990) was founded to design, construct and manage hydroelectricity
projects in the Highlands
of Scotland
. It is regarded as one of the major achievements of Scottish politician Thomas Johnston
, who chaired the board from 1945 to 1959.
When the UK electricity supply industry was nationalised in 1948, the Board took over the assets of the Grampian
Electricity Supply Company and other bodies producing electricity in the northern part of Scotland.
The headquarters of the Board were in Rothesay Terrace, Edinburgh
(outside the Board's operating area).
A further name change to Scottish and Southern Energy plc was made in December 1998 after the merger with Southern Electric plc. The brand name "Scottish Hydro-Electric" continues to be used for the company's Scottish business.
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
projects in the Highlands
Scottish Highlands
The Highlands is an historic region of Scotland. The area is sometimes referred to as the "Scottish Highlands". It was culturally distinguishable from the Lowlands from the later Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland Scots replaced Scottish Gaelic throughout most of the Lowlands...
of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. It is regarded as one of the major achievements of Scottish politician Thomas Johnston
Thomas Johnston
Thomas "Tom" Johnston CH was a prominent Scottish socialist and politician of the early 20th century, a member of the Labour Party, a Member of Parliament and government minister – usually with Cabinet responsibility for Scottish affairs.-Red Clydesider:Johnston, the son of a middle-class...
, who chaired the board from 1945 to 1959.
When the UK electricity supply industry was nationalised in 1948, the Board took over the assets of the Grampian
Grampian
Grampian was a local government region of Scotland from 1975 to 1996. It is now divided into the unitary council areas of:*Moray*Aberdeenshire*City of AberdeenThe region had five districts:*Aberdeen*Banff and Buchan...
Electricity Supply Company and other bodies producing electricity in the northern part of Scotland.
The headquarters of the Board were in Rothesay Terrace, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
(outside the Board's operating area).
Projects
(incomplete list; needs to be put in date order)- ShinRiver ShinThe River Shin is a river in the Scottish North West Highlands.The river flows from Loch Shin into the Dornoch Firth and then into the North Sea. The river is just long....
- CononRiver CononThe River Conon is a river in the Highlands of Scotland. It begins at Loch Luichart, and flows in a south-easterly direction to be joined by the River Meig at Scatwell before passing through Loch Achonachie...
- Affric-Beauly hydro-electric power schemeAffric-Beauly hydro-electric power schemeThe Affric / Beauly hydro-electric power scheme for the generation of hydro-electric power is located in the western Highlands of Scotland. It is based around Glen Strathfarrar, Glen Cannich and Glen Affric, and Strathglass further downstream....
- incorporating Loch Monar, Loch Beannacharan, Loch MullardochLoch MullardochLoch Mullardoch is a major reservoir in Glen Cannich in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland. It was created by the damming in 1951 of the River Cannich just upstream of Mullardoch House, as part of the Affric-Beauly hydro-electric power scheme. A car park at the southern end of the dam is the...
, Loch Affric and Loch Beinn a' Mheadhoin. Power stations at Fasnakyle, StrathfarrarGlen StrathfarrarGlen Strathfarrar is a glen in the Highland region of Scotland, near Loch Ness.-Geography:The River Farrar runs through the glen.The Glen is part of the Affric-Beauly hydro-electric power scheme, with a dam at Loch Monar and underground power stations at Deanie and Culligran.There are a number of...
and KilmorackKilmorackKilmorack is a small hamlet in Inverness-shire, in the Highlands of Scotland and now in the Highland Council area. It is situated on the north bank of the River Beauly, 3 miles west of Beauly and 15 miles west of the city of Inverness....
- Great Glen scheme: GlenmoristonGlenmoristonGlenmoriston or Glen Moriston is a river glen in the Scottish Highlands, that runs from Loch Ness, at the village of Invermoriston, westwards to Loch Cluanie, where it meets with Glen Shiel. The A887 and A87 roads pass through Glenmoriston....
/Glen Garry - incorporating Loch CluanieLoch CluanieLoch Cluanie is a loch in the Northwest Highlands of Scotland at the south-east end of Glen Shiel. It is a reservoir, contained behind the Cluanie Dam, constructed by Mitchell Construction and completed in 1957 as part of the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board's Glenmoriston project to...
, Loch Loyne and Loch Dunreggan in the northern section, and Loch QuoichLoch QuoichLoch Quoich is a loch and reservoir situated west of Loch Garry approximately 40k m northwest of Fort William, Lochaber, Scotland...
and Loch GarryLoch GarryLoch Garry, , is 25 km north of Fort William, Lochaber, Scotland, and is 11 km long and 50 m deep. It is fed by waters from Loch Quoich 10 km upstream on the River Garry, and drains into Loch Oich in the Great Glen just 5 km downstream...
in the southern section. This scheme also includes one of the first underground power stationUnderground power stationAn underground power station is a type of hydroelectric power station constructed by excavating the major components from rock, rather than the more common surface-based construction methods....
s in the UK
- Sloy-Awe Hydro-Electric Power SchemeLoch Sloy Hydro-Electric SchemeThe Sloy/Awe Hydro-Electric Scheme is a hydro-electric facility situated between Loch Sloy and Inveruglas on the banks of Loch Lomond in Scotland....
- located between the north end of Loch LomondLoch LomondLoch Lomond is a freshwater Scottish loch, lying on the Highland Boundary Fault. It is the largest lake in Great Britain by surface area. The lake contains many islands, including Inchmurrin, the largest fresh-water island in the British Isles, although the lake itself is smaller than many Irish...
, Loch FyneLoch FyneLoch Fyne is a sea loch on the west coast of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It extends inland from the Sound of Bute, making it the longest of the sea lochs...
, Loch AweLoch AweLoch Awe is a large body of water in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It has also given its name to a village on its banks, variously known as Loch Awe, or Lochawe. There are islands within the loch such as Innis Chonnell and Inishail.- The loch :It is the third largest freshwater loch in Scotland with...
and Loch EtiveLoch EtiveLoch Etive is a 30 km sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It reaches the sea at Connel, 5 km north of Oban. It measures 31.6 km in length and from 1.2 km to in width...
. The Sloy component was the first hydro-electric development by the Board and became fully operational in 1959.
- Breadalbane Hydro-Electric Power Scheme - centred around Loch EarnLoch EarnLoch Earn is a freshwater loch in the central highlands of Scotland, in the districts of Perth and Kinross and Stirling...
, Loch LyonLoch LyonLoch Lyon is a freshwater loch in Glen Lyon, located in Perthshire, Scotland, which feeds the River Lyon, a tributary of the River Tay. The original natural loch was much expanded by a hydro-electric dam, part of the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Breadalbane scheme....
and Loch TayLoch TayLoch Tay is a freshwater loch in the central highlands of Scotland, in the district of Perthshire.It is a long narrow loch of around 14 miles long, and typically around 1 to 1½ miles wide, following the line of the valley from the south west to north east...
, approximately 14 miles (22km) NNW of CallanderCallanderCallander is a burgh in the region of Stirling, Scotland, situated on the River Teith. The town is located in the former county of Perthshire and is a popular tourist stop to and from the Highlands....
, and completed in 1961.
- Tummel hydro-electric power schemeTummel hydro-electric power schemeThe Tummel hydro-electric power scheme for the generation of hydro-electric power is located in the Grampian Mountains, between Loch Ericht, Loch Rannoch and Loch Tummel, in Perth and Kinross, Scotland.-References: – PDF file-External links:*...
- Ben Cruachan schemeCruachan DamThe Cruachan Dam is a pumped-storage hydroelectric dam and power station in Argyll and Bute, Scotland....
. Owned by Scottish PowerScottish PowerScottishPower Ltd. is a vertically integrated energy company with its headquarters in Glasgow, Scotland. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index but in 2006 it became a subsidiary of the Spanish utility Iberdrola...
following privatisation.
Dissolution
North of Scotland Electricity plc was formed in 1989 to acquire the assets the Board ahead of privatisation, however the name was later changed to Scottish Hydro-Electric plc. The board was dissolved in March 1990 and privatised in June 1991. The company's head office was moved from Edinburgh to Perth.A further name change to Scottish and Southern Energy plc was made in December 1998 after the merger with Southern Electric plc. The brand name "Scottish Hydro-Electric" continues to be used for the company's Scottish business.
See also
- Energy policy of the United KingdomEnergy policy of the United KingdomThe current energy policy of the United Kingdom is set out in the Energy White Paper of May 2007 and Low Carbon Transition Plan of July 2009, building on previous work including the 2003 Energy White Paper and the Energy Review Report in 2006...
- Energy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use and conservation in the United KingdomEnergy use in the United Kingdom stood at 3,894.6 kilogrammes of oil equivalent per capita in 2005 compared to a world average of 1,778.0. In 2008, total energy consumed was 9.85 exajoules - around 2% of the estimated 474 EJ worldwide total...