Hietama Hydro Power Station

General information about Hietama Hydro Power Station

The power station has been renovated and modernised somewhat since it was built in 1966. For example, the turbine and generator were renovated in 1989 and the automation was replaced in 1994. The latest major renewal project at the Hietama power station was carried out in 2018.

Leuhunkoski and Hietama, two of Vattenfall’s nine hydro power plants in Finland, are located along the 80 km long Saarijärvi watercourse, in the Kymmene river basin. As early as in 2013, Vattenfall initiated the construction of fish passes past both of these power plants, as they were identified in a national Finnish investigation to be two of the fifty most important fish barriers to be addressed in the country.

In the spring of 2021, both fish passes were completed, and together they now create a main migration route for trout and other species. A completely new area, one that has been blocked for more than fifty years, is now available for natural reproduction.  The fish passes will be open from May to October.

General information about hydro power in Finland

After World War Two, large-scale hydro power plant construction took place when the country’s rebuilding work and the paper and pulp industry required a great deal of energy. As Finland is a relatively flat country, hydro power makes a small contribution and today accounts for 16% of Finland’s total electricity generation.

The largest hydro power stations are located in rivers in north and north east Finland. About half the watercourses have been expanded for electricity generation. Unregulated rapids are protected, so extra capacity can be obtained by increasing the efficiency of the old power stations or from artificial lakes.