Hydro-electric Station below Caban Coch Dam (south power house) is a Grade II listed building in the Powys local planning authority area, Wales. First listed on 31 July 1995. Mill.

Hydro-electric Station below Caban Coch Dam (south power house)

WRENN ID
waning-ashlar-umber
Grade
II
Local Planning Authority
Powys
Constituency
Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe MP: David Chadwick (LD)
Country
Wales
Date first listed
31 July 1995
Type
Mill
Address
Hydro-electric Station below Caban Coch Dam (south power house), Elan Valley, Llanwrthwl
OS grid reference
SN 925 644
Coordinates
52.26797, -3.5755
Source
Cadw listing

Also on this page: flood risk · radon risk · weather exposure · detailed attributes ↓

Description

The hydro-electric station below Caban Coch Dam, specifically the south powerhouse, is part of a symmetrical pair of power stations built from brown stone with a slate roof. It is situated parallel to the River Elan. Each station features a four-window block attached to a lower three-window block that is oriented towards the river, with a lantern ventilator on each block.

The larger block has a central doorway facing the river, with a small window above it and two windows on each side featuring cruciform glazing. The rear elevation is similar but does not have a doorway. The gable end facing the dam includes a doorway with an elliptical head and a round window above. The lower block is set forward, featuring a doorway at the angle and three windows, with a central two-light window flanked by three-light windows. The rear of this block is similar but has a central doorway instead of a window. The gable end away from the dam has a large three-light round-headed window with a heavy transom.

Inside, the station retains its operating machinery, including turbines and generators in the upstream blocks, while the downstream blocks have railed pits and wooden cases with gauges.

A footbridge connects the two stations. It is made of stone and features three broad elliptical arches, with return walls at the ends opposite the entrances to the powerhouses. The bridge connects with revetment walls below the powerhouses, which are made of grey stone with splayed downstream ends and arched outlets.

Local climate

Hydro-electric Station below Caban Coch Dam (south power house) sits in one of the wettest parts of the UK, with an average of 1,200 mm of rain a year. This makes it wetter than 91% of listed buildings in the UK. Its exposure to wind-driven rain is greater than that of 84% of listed buildings.

It experiences an average of 54 freeze-thaw cycles a year, more than 95% of listed buildings. Of these, 33 follow at least 1 mm of rain in the preceding 48 hours. Average temperatures at this location have risen by 0.3°C per decade since 1991.

Averages for 1991–2020; temperature trend 1991–2025. Figures describe the wider area (a grid cell of roughly 10 km), not the individual site. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026.

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  1. Footbridge at hydro-electric station (partly in Rhayader community) Grade II 24 m
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  4. Caban Coch dam (partly in Rhayader community) Grade II* 121 m
  5. Caban Coch Dam (partly in Llanwrthwl community) Grade II* 135 m
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