Leiths

Torlundy Concrete Plant supplied structural concrete for thrust blocks, bases and a dam with the concrete placed at various locations on site by helicopter and skip. Due to the time of year, the window of opportunity for concrete supply was limited and changed by the hour, with the contractor keeping in close contact with the concrete plant to ensure that every opportunity for supply was used. 

The project is being developed by a subsidary of Nevis Range Hydro Company Ltd.  The scheme comprises of a small dam at 580m in the 'Back Corrie' area of the ski centre, a 1.3km pipe, which will be buried, and a turbine house with 2x 550kW turbines.  Once the water has been through the turbines, generating electricity for Nevis Range, it flows back into the Allt Choille Rais burn where it drops into Rio Tinto's intake generating power for the smelter.

The £4 million hydro scheme has the power to deliver 1,100kW of electricity for the base station at Nevis Range to power the gondola, offices and the Pinemarten cafe with excess power exported to the grid.