Vanhakaupunki hydropower plant

Helsingin Energia’s oldest power plant in operation is the Vanhakaupunki hydropower plant, which started as a turbine pump plant in 1876. In addition to producing electricity, the Vanhakaupunki hydropower plant is a power station museum of the City of Helsinki.

The Vanhakaupunki hydropower plant produces an average of 500 MWh of electricity each year, corresponding to the annual electricity consumption of about 250 apartments. The ‘museum hydropower’ produced at the plant can be purchased by the Environmental penny customers of Helsingin Energia.

The use of the Vanhakaupunki hydropower plant is affected by water levels, which are regulated by the amount of precipitation, as well as by environmental factors: the plant stops operating automatically when the water level falls below a certain limit. This safeguards sufficient volume of water to the migratory fish in the eastern branch of the Vantaanjoenkoski rapids.