The Búrfell hydroelectric power plant (Búrfellsstöð or Búrfellsvirkjun in Icelandic) is a

run-of-river Run-of-river hydroelectricity (ROR) or run-of-the-river hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric generation plant whereby little or no water storage is provided. Run-of-the-river power plants may have no water storage at all or a limited amou ...

hydroelectric power plant Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

located in the Þjórsá valley in southwest

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

. It is operated by

Landsvirkjun Landsvirkjun, () the National Power Company of Iceland, is Iceland's largest electricity generator. Landsvirkjun operates 18 power plants in Iceland concentrated on five main areas of operation. History Landsvirkjun was founded on 1 July 1965 b ...

. It was, since its construction in 1969, until the construction of the Kárahnjúka power plant in 2008, the largest power plant in Iceland with a capacity of 270 MW (increased to 370 MW in 2018). It was mainly built to supply electricity to an

aluminum Aluminium (aluminum in American and Canadian English) is a chemical element with the symbol Al and atomic number 13. Aluminium has a density lower than those of other common metals, at approximately one third that of steel. It has ...

factory located in

Straumsvík Straumsvík (, "stream cove") is a harbour on the northern shore of the Reykjanes Peninsula in Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparse ...

, 3 km west of

Hafnarfjörður Hafnarfjörður (), officially Hafnarfjarðarkaupstaður (), is a port town and municipality in Iceland, located about south of Reykjavík. The municipality consists of two non-contiguous areas in the Capital Region, on the southwest coast of t ...

History

The idea of harnessing the energy of the Þjórsá River at Búrfell Mountain was proposed in 1917. For two years, the

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

Gotfred Sætersmoen conducted a study on the development of hydroelectricity in the Þjórsá region. He proposed five stations, Búrfell being by far the most important. In 1960, the project was seriously considered. A project of this magnitude could be economically very interesting if the electricity could be used quickly, but Icelandic consumption was not increasing fast enough to make the project viable. The country then had the idea of supplying this electricity to energy-intensive industries. In 1966, an agreement was signed with

Alusuisse Alusuisse was a Swiss industrial group founded as ''Aluminium Industrie Aktien'' in 1898 in Zurich, Switzerland. The organisation was named ''Schweizerische Aluminium AG'' from 1963, ''Alusuisse-Lonza Holding AG'' from 1990, and ''Algroup'' from 19 ...

for the construction of the aluminum plant in

and the green light was given for the plant. Construction began in June 1966. The power plant started to deliver its power in 1969, with the commissioning of 3 turbines of 35 MW each. The capacity was doubled in 1972 with the commissioning of the last three turbines, bringing the installed power to 210 W. The plant was renovated between 1997 and 1999, bringing its capacity to 270 MW.

Extension

In the 2010s, the project has undergone an important extension, with the construction by

of a second hydroelectric power station not far from the existing one. This is a response to the observed increase in the flow of the

Þjórsá Þjórsá () is Iceland's longest river at 230 kilometers (about 143 miles). It is in the south of the island. Þjórsá is a glacier river and has its source on the glacier Hofsjökull. It flows out through narrow gorges in the highlands of Ic ...

: it is indeed fed in large part by meltwater from glaciers, whose volume is increasing due to global warming. The average flow of Icelandic rivers should increase by 15% between 2015 and 2050. Work on the extension, named Búrfell II, began in the spring of 2016 and will last two years. With an installed capacity of 100 MW, the plant was inaugurated on June 28, 2018, in the presence of Icelandic President

Guðni Th. Jóhannesson Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson (; born 26 June 1968) is an Icelandic historian and politician serving as the sixth and current president of Iceland. He took office in 2016 after winning the most votes in the 2016 election, 71,356 (39.1%). He wa ...

Specifications

Dam

The power station exploits a catchment area of 6,400 km2, offering an average annual flow of 340 m3/s. A 370 m long

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, a ...

diverts the course of the Þjórsá, which used to flow around the Búrfell mountain from the south. It gave birth to a small reservoir, Lake Bjarnalón, with an area of 1.18 km². Its altitude fluctuates between 241 and 247 m.

Búrfell I Power Plant

From the Bjarnalón lake, the water reaches a 1,564 m long and 10 m diameter intake gallery. After a 115 m drop in a pressurized

penstock A penstock is a sluice or gate or intake structure that controls water flow, or an enclosed pipe that delivers water to hydro turbines and sewerage systems. The term is inherited from the earlier technology of mill ponds and watermills. H ...

, it reaches the power plant where it drives 6

Francis turbine The Francis turbine is a type of water turbine. It is an inward-flow reaction turbine that combines radial and axial flow concepts. Francis turbines are the most common water turbine in use today, and can achieve over 95% efficiency. The proces ...

s of 45 MW each. The total equipment flow is 300 m3/s. The water is then released near Hjálparfoss, where it joins the Þjórsá and returns to its normal course. The electricity production reaches an average of 2,300 GWh/year.

Búrfell II Power Plant

The second plant is underground and has a single 100 MW Francis turbine supplied by Andritz. However, the plant is designed to accommodate an additional 40 MW in the future. The water, which comes from the same reservoir as for the historical power plant, flows through a 370 m long intake tunnel and then drops 110 m into the penstock. The turbinable flow is 92 m3/s. At the outlet of the power station, it is evacuated via a 450 m long escape tunnel, then rejoins the main course of the Þjórsá via a 2.2 km long canal. The electrical production of the extension should be around 300 GWh/year.{{Cite web, date=2017-02-01, title=Hydronews n°30, url=https://www.andritz.com/resource/blob/110484/585c05cb5e4c7b5fa26c0e2da7987b7e/hy-hn30-en-data.pdf, url-status=live, access-date=2022-02-10, website=Andritz, language=en, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190726112354/https://www.andritz.com/resource/blob/110484/585c05cb5e4c7b5fa26c0e2da7987b7e/hy-hn30-en-data.pdf , archive-date=2019-07-26

References

Hydroelectric power stations in Iceland