Lio power plant

The power plant was commissioned in 1969. The main intake is located in Lake Byrtevatn and its water level is regulated by a rock-fill dam approximately 20 metres high.

The power station is located beside the Rukke bridge about five kilometres from the village of Dalen. The power plant's discharge into the Tokkeåi River above Dalen ensures a certain amount of water in the river, though the flow is reduced somewhat due to operation of the plant.

Lio power plant has one generating unit equipped with a Francis turbine, and the installed capacity is 43MW.

The power plant uses a gross height of fall of 352 metres.

Lio power plant is an important hub for electricity supply in Western Telemark, and feeds power to both the local and national grids. In addition to Statkraft, the Vest-Telemark Kraftlag power utility and Statnett are connected here.

Rehabilitation

Lio power plant has undergone an almost total modernisation including turbine, generator and waterway upgrades, as well as a new turbine regulator and new control unit.

After the upgrade, which was completed in 2016, the installed capacity was increased by 3 MW to 43 MW. Annual production was increased by 18 GWh to a total of 243 GWh.

The overall project had five parts: construction, transformer and equipment, control unit, waterway and generating unit. A three-winding transformer inside the plant was replaced with a pair of two-winding transformers: a production transformer inside the plant and a grid transformer outside.

The generator and turbine inside the plant were upgraded, along with the tunnel and penstock in the waterway. There is a new control unit, a new transformer and a separate transformer building outside. The upgrading of the transformer will also help secure the power supply to the local community.

The plant is located near the Rukkeåi River, which flows into the Tokkeåi River and Lake Bandak. The Tokkeåi River has a very valuable stock of large-sized trout that uses several areas of the river for spawning and growing. The Bandak Delta is also an important habitat for birds and fish. The plant was therefore planned to provide the best possible protection against oil spills.

The standard of some sections of County Road 38 is poor, and four sharp beds were straightened out to ease transporting the transformer to the power plant. The local community is very pleased about this.