Ekkjestølen power plant

The Ekkjestølen power plant is located in Odda municipality in Hordaland county. It utilises the waterfall between elevation 848 and elevation 387 in the Ekkjeåna river that flows out into Røldalsvatnet lake.

The Ekkestølen power plant is a pure river power plant, i.e. without any type of storage reservoir. The Lammabekken river has been transferred by digging and blasting an approx. 10-metre-long channel. There is beam fencing at the entrance to the channel to lead the stream back to its natural watercourse. This transfer alone ensures a power production of 1.8 GWh. The intake dam is 20 metres long. The intake basin has a volume of 2,000 m³. The intake is equipped with a beam fence, intake grate, hatch and cone fitting for the pipe. An air pipe is moulded into the cone just downstream of the hatch. The intake is located in an area that is normally exposed to large amounts of snow. Here, a small hatch house has been built with an area of approx. 12 m² to ensure sufficient operating conditions. The waterway consists of a ductile cast iron pipe with a diameter of 600 mm. This is partly buried in soil and partly laid in a blasted trench. The waterway crosses national highway 520 to Sauda in four places.

The power station is located at elevation 387 by Røldalsvatnet lake at Ekkjevika.

Outflow from the turbine runs through a pipe below the highway, RV 13, and under Røldalsvatnet.

Installed capacity: 4,0 MW Maximum flow rate: 1.1 m3/s. Pipes / waterway: ø600mm buried ductile cast iron pipe, 1840m in length

A 2-nozzle horizontal Pelton turbine has been installed.

Technical data

Rainfall field

6.7 km²

Minimum water flow

Summer: 100 l/s

Intake elevation

848 m

Power station elevation

387,0 m

Drop height

461 m

Production

17.1 GWh
This corresponds to electricity 1069 households.