The Fljótsdalur hydropower project in Iceland – widely known as the Kárahnjúkar hydropower plant – has been awarded Gold certification under the Hydropower Sustainability Standard (HSS), following a new assessment in 2024.
This achievement reflects the project’s long-term commitment to sustainability practices. An initial assessment in 2017 using earlier sustainability tools, while showing a strong overall performance, identified areas for improvement. Since then, the project’s developer, Landsvirkjun, has taken steps to further enhance its performance, leading to the project’s recognition with the highest level of certification under the globally recognised HSS.
With an installed capacity of 690 MW, the run-of-river plant is Iceland’s largest power station and a major contributor to the country’s renewable energy sector. Its primary purpose is to power an aluminium smelter in the east of the country.
The new assessment under the HSS shows that the project complies with all relevant sustainability requirements and continues to deliver high performance across environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria.
Notably, the project scored above 80% on the advanced-level requirements of the HSS in all the 10 relevant assessment topics – making it only the second project ever assessed under the HSS to achieve this level of performance.
The certification of Fljótsdalur also marks a global milestone for the HSS, with projects now certified on six continents.
“Sustainability at the Fljótsdalur plant is not a static concept – it is embedded in a process of continuous improvement,” said Bernt Rydgren, the project’s independent lead assessor. “The project stands out for its robust governance and operations, and its ability to evolve with changing expectations and knowledge. It is an excellent example of how established, operational hydropower assets can be managed to meet the highest global standards of sustainability.”
While the 2024 HSS assessment focused on current operations, the public consultation reflected some lingering concerns from the project’s planning and construction phase in the early 2000s, particularly around landscape impacts. Furthermore, increased turbidity in Lake Lagarfljót, caused by glacial runoff diversion, has affected local fisheries. Landsvirkjun has compensated by actively supporting fisheries elsewhere in East Iceland.
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