Reykjanes Power Plant

Electricity generation at the Reykjanes Power Plant began in May 2006. Unit 1 was commissioned in mid-May, and Unit 2 entered service later that same month. The power plant was designed to be operated primarily through remote monitoring and control from the control center at Svartsengi. Unit 3 was later installed and commissioned in 2022.

The Reykjanes Power Plant consists of three dual-pressure steam turbines: two 50 MW units and one 30 MW unit, all equipped with seawater-cooled condensers. This type of system was a technological innovation in Iceland when the plant was constructed. Together, the two larger turbines use approximately 4,000 liters of cooling water per second in separate pumping systems, a flow rate comparable to the average discharge of the Elliðaár rivers in Iceland‘s capital Reykjavík. The third unit, rated at 30 MW, utilizes geothermal brine produced as a by-product of the operation of the two larger units, eliminating the need for additional drilling to support its installation.

The cooling water from the Reykjanes Power Plant is a fully utilized resource and serves as a textbook example of how resource streams from geothermal energy utilization can contribute to a circular economy. After the condensers are cooled with seawater, the temperature of the cooling water rises from approximately 8 to 10°C to between 30 and 33°C. This warmed seawater, known as ylsjór (heated, lava filtered seawater), is supplied to nearby land-based aquaculture facilities. It enables companies to farm warm-water species that otherwise could not be cultivated in the Northern Hemisphere.

An industrial heating utility is also operated in connection with the Reykjanes Power Plant. Heat from the plant is supplied through a closed district heating system to nearby businesses, which use the thermal energy primarily for drying fish products.

HS Orka owns approximately 50 hectares of industrial land adjacent to the Reykjanes Power Plant. These sites have been zoned and prepared for development and are available for a variety of industrial activities that could complement the operations of the HS Orka Resource Park.