Energy from the Mountains – the Reisseck II Pumped Storage Power Station in Carinthia
The increased use of wind energy in Europe is requiring power stations that can adjust to output fluctuations of wind power stations and that can store excess energy and distribute this energy on short notice when needed. The construction of the Reisseck II pumped storage power station is a good example for a future-oriented adaptation of the electrical power supply to the increased requirements of the market.
The Reisseck II power station will connect the Reisseck/Kreuzeck and Malta power stations in upper Carinthia via an underground waterway that is more than 5km long. It allows a more efficient use of the existing plants thanks to two modern sets of turbine pumps. The turbine pumps are located in a completely subterranean power station inside a cavern and can be used both for storing and producing energy. This way, the plant contributes significantly to the region’s security of supply. The power plant, which has been under construction since 2010, is scheduled to be operational in 2014 and will have a peak generating capacity of 430MW. The power station will be built in a cavern inside the Reisseck/Kreuzeck Mountain Range in the Muehldorf Rift at a height of 1,600m. The Reisseck II Power Station will be operated fully automated, remote-controlled and telemonitored. Construction work mainly includes the following measures:
- A 4,993m long upstream waterway with several adits, an inlet and an outlet structure as well as a pressure shaft
- The Burgstall Power Station inside a cavern
- An approx. 0.3km long, downstream waterway with a downstream gallery as well as a connection to the waterway of Malta Power Station
The main part of the project is located in the central gneiss area of the Glockner Mountain, which is characterized by predominantly high rock solidity and high abrasiveness. The excavation of the upstream pressure shaft is carried out using a hard rock tunnel boring machine with a nominal milling diameter of 7.03m. The complete excavation work in the caverns and access galleries is carried out using conventional blasting. DSI Austria, the leading system supplier of reinforcement and ground support systems for Tunneling, produced and supplied a large range of rock support products for this important project that were used for the different caverns and excavations as well as for stabilizing the tunnel portals. Among other products, DSI Austria supplied Lattice Girders, OMEGA-BOLT® Expandable Friction Bolts, DSI Hollow Bar Anchors, SN Anchors, DSI Strand Anchors, DSI Anchors and Self-Drilling Spiles.