Porjus
Encyclopedia
Porjus is a locality
situated in Jokkmokk Municipality
, Norrbotten County
, Sweden
with 317 inhabitants in 2005. Geographically it is situated by the shores of Lule River
at 499 meter height.
Porjus is known for having one of the oldest hydropower
plants in Sweden (Porjus kraftverk - Porjus hydroelectric power station
), built 1910-1915. The power plant was built to deliver electricity to the building of the railroad between Luleå
and Narvik
, where the mining industry shipped iron ore.
Today, Porjus is a living village and the old power plant is a popular tourist attraction among many others. Swedish power company Vattenfall
is the biggest employer, but there are also a number of smaller companies such as the small aviation company Fiskflyg, which offered the first regular passenger flights in Sweden back in the days (the route: Porjus - Suorva). There is also a unique golf course (you play across the Lule river, next to a big dam), a small downhill skiing course, snowmobile routes, small shops, a 50 kilometer long walking trail from Gällivare
, used by the workers to carry building material 90 years ago, and a unique photo gallery which has aurora borealis as its specialty.
Porjus was the home of the online artists Lagoona
between the years 1996-2004. Singer Birgitta Svendén
and the former MD of major Swedish technology company Ericsson, Carl-Henric Svanberg
, now chairman of BP
, are two other well-known persons who were born in Porjus.
Porjus is also the last stop before you enter Laponia area, a UNESCO world heritage area which includes four national parks.
Urban areas in Sweden
Urban area is a common English translation of the Swedish term tätort. The official term in English, used by Statistics Sweden, is, however, locality. There are 1,940 localities in Sweden . They could be compared with census-designated places in the United States.A tätort in Sweden has a minimum of...
situated in Jokkmokk Municipality
Jokkmokk Municipality
Jokkmokk Municipality is a municipality in Norrbotten County in northern Sweden. Its seat is located in Jokkmokk.The name Jokkmokk is Sami for the words "river" and "bend", since the town is situated close to a bend in the nearby river....
, Norrbotten County
Norrbotten County
Norrbotten County is the northernmost county or län of Sweden. It borders Västerbotten County to the southwest, the Gulf of Bothnia to the southeast. It also borders the counties of Nordland and Troms in Norway to the northwest, and Lapland Province in Finland to the northeast.The name...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
with 317 inhabitants in 2005. Geographically it is situated by the shores of Lule River
Lule River
Lule River is a major river in Sweden, rising in northern Sweden and flowing southeast for before reaching the Gulf of Bothnia at Luleå. It is the second longest river by watershed area or length in Norrbotten County , but is the largest by average discharge.It has a watershed of 25,240.5 km² of...
at 499 meter height.
Porjus is known for having one of the oldest hydropower
Hydropower
Hydropower, hydraulic power, hydrokinetic power or water power is power that is derived from the force or energy of falling water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. Since ancient times, hydropower has been used for irrigation and the operation of various mechanical devices, such as...
plants in Sweden (Porjus kraftverk - Porjus hydroelectric power station
Porjus Hydroelectric Power Station
Porjus power station is one of the oldest and largest power plants in Sweden, situated near Porjus. It was built 1910-1915 and has a power of 440 MW. Besides three-phase AC, the plant originally also generated single phase 15 Hz AC for railway traction and hence, two single-phase 80 kV power lines...
), built 1910-1915. The power plant was built to deliver electricity to the building of the railroad between Luleå
Luleå
- Transportation :Local buses are run by .A passenger train service is available from Luleå Centralstation on Sweden's national SJ railway service northbound to Narvik on the Norwegian coast, or southbound to Stockholm. See Rail transport in Sweden....
and Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
, where the mining industry shipped iron ore.
Today, Porjus is a living village and the old power plant is a popular tourist attraction among many others. Swedish power company Vattenfall
Vattenfall
Vattenfall is a Swedish power company. The name Vattenfall is Swedish for waterfall, and is an abbreviation of its original name, Royal Waterfall Board...
is the biggest employer, but there are also a number of smaller companies such as the small aviation company Fiskflyg, which offered the first regular passenger flights in Sweden back in the days (the route: Porjus - Suorva). There is also a unique golf course (you play across the Lule river, next to a big dam), a small downhill skiing course, snowmobile routes, small shops, a 50 kilometer long walking trail from Gällivare
Gällivare
Gällivare is a locality and the seat of Gällivare Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 8,480 inhabitants in 2005. The town was founded in the 17th century...
, used by the workers to carry building material 90 years ago, and a unique photo gallery which has aurora borealis as its specialty.
Porjus was the home of the online artists Lagoona
Lagoona
Lagoona was a dance and techno band, consisting of the two music producers Andreas Viklund and Björn Karlsson . The band was based in a small town called Porjus in northern Sweden...
between the years 1996-2004. Singer Birgitta Svendén
Birgitta Svendén
Birgitta Svendén , is a Swedish operatic .Svendén, who was born in Porjus and raised in Vuollerim, studied at the Opera in Stockholm. She has made an international career in the first place as a Wagner singer, especially at the Bayreuth Festival.Birgitta Svendén has been a hovsångerska since 1995...
and the former MD of major Swedish technology company Ericsson, Carl-Henric Svanberg
Carl-Henric Svanberg
Carl-Henric Svanberg, born on May 29 1952 in Porjus, Sweden, is a businessman and current Chairman of BP.-Life and career:Svanberg holds a Master's degree in Applied Physics from the Linköping Institute of Technology and a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Uppsala University...
, now chairman of BP
BP
BP p.l.c. is a global oil and gas company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest energy company and fourth-largest company in the world measured by revenues and one of the six oil and gas "supermajors"...
, are two other well-known persons who were born in Porjus.
Porjus is also the last stop before you enter Laponia area, a UNESCO world heritage area which includes four national parks.
External links
- Official site of Porjus (in SwedishSwedish languageSwedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
) - Porjus, Northern Lights village