Page\Park is supporting SSE’s plan to convert the Category-A listed Sloy Power Station on the banks of Loch Lomond into a new pumped storage hydro scheme. The project last week reached a milestone which saw the submission of a Section 36 planning application to Scottish Government ministers. Subject to a positive consenting outcome, SSE Renewables hopes to make a final investment decision on Sloy in late 2027 and to fully adapt and commission the new pumped storage scheme by the end of 2030.

Sloy Power Station is Britain’s largest conventional hydro power plant and has been in operation since 1950. SSE Renewables is proposing to convert the existing hydro-electric scheme into a pumped storage scheme by introducing new pumps located in the grounds of the existing building. These new pumps would enable water to be lifted from Loch Lomond to Loch Sloy using the existing pipelines and tunnels during times of low demand (typically overnight) or times of oversupply (when there is too much renewable energy being generated). This would enable energy to be stored at Loch Sloy until it is required during periods of higher demand.

Page\Park has worked with SSE and ASH Design + Assessment to develop design proposals for the setting of these new pumps, which are located primarily below ground. A new main pump hall housing an overhead gantry crane celebrates the engineering feats proposed for the site, while remaining subservient to the existing Tarbolton & Ochterlony-designed building and as far as possible preserving views through a largely transparent new structure. The proposed extension picks up subtle clues from the existing building; in massing, neo-classical composition, and materiality.

Find out more about the project at https://www.sserenewables.com/sloy/pumpedstorage