Guided tours return to La Malva hydropower plant
The La Malva hydropower plant is once again open to visitors. EDP, the facility’s owner, has relaunched this year’s guided tour program, offering a chance to explore the century-old plant located in the Somiedo Natural Park.
The tour program began in 2018 and runs from Tuesday to Sunday, starting around Easter (March/April) and continuing until the Epiphany holiday in January. Since its launch, more than 10,000 people have taken an interest in visiting the site. Reservations must be made through the company’s website.
Tours are approximately 90 minutes long, free of charge, and open to all audiences. During the visit, participants learn about the plant’s history, its role in Asturias’ economy, how it operates, and explore a museum that features various machine tools and a fun simulator.
Inside the main building, visitors will find an exhibition set up in the former homes of the plant’s director and employees. It features several rooms with panels explaining the origins of electricity use and its importance for economic and social development in both Somiedo and the broader Asturias region, as well as the planning, construction, and commissioning of La Malva.
The old workshop area is another highlight of the exhibition. Given its remote and hard-to-reach location, La Malva was once equipped with a workshop to handle small repairs independently. Visitors can see a range of period machine tools from La Malva and other EDP facilities.
The tour ends with a control room simulator where visitors can experience first-hand how to start up and shut down the plant’s generating units.
Located in the Somiedo Natural Park, the La Malva hydropower plant is one of the few hydropower facilities in the world integrated within a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, a designation granted to this area in 2000.
La Malva marks the origin of EDP’s operations in Spain. Since it began operating in September 1917, the plant has contributed to the progress of Asturias’ people and businesses. Over its first hundred years, it generated more than 3 million megawatt-hours of electricity. Its average annual production of 35,000 MWh is equivalent to the consumption of around 10,000 households.
EDP’s plant tour program is part of the company’s corporate social responsibility efforts and aims to foster close, open, and transparent relationships with local communities. These visits offer in-depth insight into EDP’s operations and the different processes involved in electricity generation.
