Livishie Power StationAccess tunnel: NGR Tailrace: NGR
Livishe is a small station, capacity 15MW. Commisioned 195?. Part of the Invermoriston Scheme. Doesn't have a large reservoir, but is fed by water from several streams on the North side of the River Moriston, gathered by tunnels and aqueducts and led to a headpond on the Allt Blairaidh. It was completely refurbished in the late '90s and is one of the most beautiful underground stations in Scotland: [Source: Mike Ross]
Photo:Livishe: Access Tunnel and
loading bay. Looking back up the fairly short, curved, access tunnel - a sliver of daylight can just be made out around the curve of the tunnel. The doors and passages either side of the tunnel lead to the bathroom, battery room, and access to the draft tube stoplog gantry. The tiled area is the loading bay - sized to be able to hold the largest single component of the alternator/turbine during disassembly.
Nice shot of the 15MW alternator, clearly showing the bare rock walls of the excavation - in the typically very hard-rock tunneling in the Highlands, it's normal to leave the walls bare unless there's a specific reason the seal them. The stairs on the left lead down to the main inlet valve pit.
Another view of the alternator. Note the crane rails running along the base of the roof, crane cab just visible in upper left.
Descending the stairs to the valve pit also gives access to the top of the turbine. Bloody great shaft, down here we're under the generator, the turbine is below our feet - the green steel removable decking gives access to the spiral casing and guide vane bearings. The blue machinery is IIRC the guide vane actuator - the 'throttle' in effect.
Home Page Last updated 19th February 2002 Style © 1998-2001 Subterranea Britannica Words and images © 2002 Michael J. Ross. |
Photo:Livishe: Alternator. 
Photo:Livishe: Alternator. 
Photo:Livishe: Turbine shaft.