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Key personnel at an inspection visit at the planned Moglicë reservoir in Albania | Photo: Tiemen Gordijn/Multiconsult

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The existing Moglicë reservoir will be used as the lower reservoir for a pumped storage plant. Photo: Henki Ødegaard/Multiconsult

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One pumped storage power plant is planned at Loch Ness in Scotland | Photo: Patrick Hansson/Multiconsult

Multiconsult secures two international pumped storage plant contracts

Multiconsult has entered into two new international contracts for pumped storage projects. The contracts include feasibility studies and other preliminary work for one power plant in Scotland and one in Albania.

28. October 2024
Cato A. Mørk

“We are proud to have secured these contracts, which highlight our expertise and leading position in pumped storage. Both projects will play a crucial role in facilitating the transition to a more sustainable and flexible energy system,” says Anders Gustav Pettersen of Multiconsult UK Ltd.

Pumped storage hydro schemes, with their ability to store energy both in the short and long term, are crucial for integrating renewable energy sources such as solar and wind into the modern energy system. In a pumped storage facility, water is pumped to an upper reservoir when there is a surplus of energy in the system, allowing the water to be reused to generate power when needed in the energy system.

In Scotland, Statkraft and Multiconsult UK Ltd have signed an agreement for feasibility study and tender documents for a pumped storage power plant at Loch Ness. The project will have an installed capacity of circa 500 MW and is located 14 km southwest of Inverness, Scotland. The plant will utilise water from Loch Ness to store surplus energy and release it when needed, thus enhancing the UK’s energy security. The project includes an underground power plant with associated tunnels, a dam, and an upper reservoir with a capacity of over 5 million cubic metres, while Loch Ness will be used as the lower reservoir.

In Albania, a consortium of Multiconsult Norge AS and Tractebel Engineering SA has signed a contract with Statkraft for a feasibility study for a pumped storage plant, including an environmental and social impact assessment. The project involves the Moglicë Pump Storage Extension Project, located on the Devoll River in Albania, and includes an underground power plant with associated tunnels, a dam, and an upper reservoir, while the existing Moglicë reservoir will be used as the lower reservoir. The planned installed capacity is up to 1620 MW, with an estimated energy storage capacity of around 28 GWh.

“Pumped storage hydro schemes will play a key role in ensuring efficient energy storage as more solar and wind power is integrated into the energy system. We are very pleased that Multiconsult and our partners have been chosen to carry out these exciting and groundbreaking projects. This strengthens our position as the leading advisor in pumped storage and complex mountain installations for hydropower,” says Lars Jørgen Saaghus of Multiconsult Norge AS.