The Tyssedal power plant
The Tyssedal power plant opened in 1908 in the inner reaches of Sørfjord in Hardanger. The Tysso 1 power plant, which was built with the aid of Swedish capital and Norwegian engineering expertise, supplied electricity to two factories in Odda along cables which were 7 kilometres long. This ambitious, pioneering project took 12 years to complete and employed 500 men. One notable feature was a pipe trench which runs 730 metres down the steep mountainside. In just 20 years the tiny village of Tyssedal, with its population of 39 inhabitants, was transformed into an industrial town with almost 1,400 permanent residents. Production ceased in 1989. In the year 2000, Tysso 1 was scheduled as a site of cultural heritage and is now run by the Norwegian Museum of Hydropower & Industry.
photo: Bård Løken
