A new digital initiative allows the public to virtually explore Cruachan Power Station, the iconic pumped storage plant located within a mountain in Argyll and Bute, Scotland.
Scottish Renewables, the representative body for Scotland’s renewable energy industry, has launched Renewables360, a project that uses Google Street View to provide virtual tours of 10 notable renewable energy sites across Scotland.
Among the featured locations is Cruachan Power Station, operated by Drax. Visitors can explore the station’s underground turbine hall, which lies hundreds of feet within the mountain, using 360-degree imagery.
Other sites included in the project are the world’s largest floating offshore wind farm near Aberdeen, the UK’s first large-scale high-temperature water source heat pump, and one of the country’s tallest onshore wind turbines.
The 10 sites appear as blue dots on Google Maps and are also accessible through the Renewables360 hub.
Claire Mack, Chief Executive of Scottish Renewables, said: “The energy industry is central to all our lives, but until now the way in which electricity and heat are generated has been something of a mystery to the public.
“With 350 member companies (including Drax), we’re used to visiting the amazing places where clean energy is generated. Google now gives us the opportunity to share that experience with the rest of the world.
“The images that are now available for the world to view are breathtaking and take the public to places they would never otherwise be able to visit.”
Plans for Cruachan expansion
Drax is also pursuing plans to expand Cruachan Power Station by constructing a new 600MW power station adjacent to the existing facility. If completed, this expansion would more than double Cruachan’s generation capacity, increasing it to over 1GW.
