ISTAK starts work on expansion of Svartsengi geothermal plant, Iceland

Students visiting the Svartsengi geothermal plant in Iceland (source: ThinkGeoEnergy)

Icelandic construction company ISTAK has started work on the new power station building as part of the expansion work at the Svartsengi geothermal power plant in Iceland. This work is being executed based on an agreement signed between ISTAK and HS Orka for the construction of the structures associated with the expansion project. ISTAK is also in charge of coordination and safety issues at the work site.

The project, which goes by the name SVA7, involves removing older production units and replacing them with a new production unit, which will improve the utilization of resources and increase the plant’s production capacity to 85 MW. Groundbreaking of the expansion project was reported in early 2023.

Today, the installed power in Svartsengi is around 66 MW. The contract amounts to ISK 2.6 billion, but the total cost estimate amounts to ISK 12 billion. The whole project is similar in size to the expansion of Reykjanesvirkjun, which was commissioned at the beginning of the year. It can be assumed that around 100 people will come to the work at the peak.

“The first shovel for SVA7 was taken in December last year, and earthworks have already begun. They were completed in the spring months and at the same time, the project management team has been working on the procurement of equipment with a long delivery time, such as a generator, cooling tower, condenser, transformers and gas suction system. The concrete work on the new station building started in the middle of September,” said Sunna Björg Helgadóttir, manager of the technical department.

“Delivery time for critical equipment is long as expected. Several aspects of the project are still undecided, but the aim is for all agreements to be completed in the coming months,” Birgir Thór Birgisson, senior project manager of SVA7.

Source: HS Orka