A £3 MILLION hydro energy generation scheme has been completed at an East Lothian reservoir.

The project at Whiteadder Reservoir, led by Scottish Water Horizons, the public utility’s commercial subsidiary, and delivered by renewable energy specialists Emtec Energy, is believed to be the first of its kind in Europe.

The pioneering scheme is expected to offset nearly one-third of the energy used by one of East Lothian’s largest pumping stations, named Hungry Snout.

This station collects about 32 million litres of water each day for the Castle Moffat Water Treatment Works, which provides most of East Lothian with drinking water.

The project allows for green energy generation while controlling the reservoir's level during weather-related fluctuations.

The water is drawn up through siphon technology, runs down through the hydro turbine, and returns to the natural environment.

READ MORE: East Lothian reservoir’s new energy generation lowers carbon footprint

Gillian Martin MSP, Acting Net Zero and Energy Secretary, said: "This is a very welcome milestone in green energy and Scotland’s goal to reach net-zero emissions by 2045.

"Scottish Water’s £3 million investment in this innovative technology, the first of its kind in Europe, is maximising the value of our water resources, reducing emissions and delivering benefits to customers by reducing costs which can be reinvested."

The new system will generate 0.82GWh of renewable energy annually from the 199kW turbine and save about 111 tonnes of carbon each year. This is comparable to a passenger jet flying from Edinburgh to Sydney 40 times.

Neil Beaumont, senior project manager at Scottish Water Horizons, said: "We are delighted to have completed construction of this exciting project, which will produce enough green energy to meet 30 per cent of the power needs of the Hungry Snout pumping station and reduce our reliance on drawing energy from the national grid.

"We also wanted to ensure our carbon footprint was as low as possible throughout the construction process, which is why we used divers and barges to sink the pipes under the water – this was a much less intrusive and carbon intensive way of installing the new infrastructure than more traditional methods."

The scheme is equipped with smart controls and sensors to ensure that the reservoir's water levels are protected.

Elise Cartmell, Scottish Water's general manager for net zero, said: "Scottish Water is always looking for opportunities to create renewable energy via our assets and this scheme joins over 30 hydro turbines already installed at our sites around the country."

Scottish Water aims to achieve net-zero total emissions across all its operational and investment activities by 2040.