Reykidalur Dam

The first public electricity supply in Iceland began operating in Hafnarfjörður in 1904. The power station was on Austurgata and was owned by Jóhannes Reykdal. Due to high demand for electricity in the town the following year, it was decided to build a new and much larger power station at Hörðuvellir. Jóhannes leased the land from the estate manager at Garðar but, in addition to the dam, he had a long water conduit and a powerhouse built, with accommodation for the station master and his family. The Hörðuvellir building is the first power station to be built in Iceland.

This new power station was commissioned in the autumn of 1906 and was designed to produce 37 kW, but due to a lack of water it was never able to generate more than 22 kW. In 1909, the municipality of Hafnarfjörður bought both power stations from Jóhannes, and the Lighting Committee was subsequently established. The electricity supply was arranged in such a way that power could only be obtained during the so-called 'light hours', which ran from dusk until midnight between 15 August and 15 May. At other times, no electricity was available.

In 1914, the water chute from the dam to the powerhouse had become so dilapidated that it was decided to shorten it, and the power station was moved from the house to a new building situated much closer to the dam.

Following an accident at the dam last spring, the pond was drained and several modifications were made to the dam's spillway to prevent a similar incident from recurring. The works are now complete and the pond has been refilled.
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