Micro hydropower in Norway

Small rivers.
Clean power.

Rinn Energy develops, builds and runs small hydropower plants together with the people who own Norway's waterfalls. No civil work required: no dam, no scars on the landscape. Just clean electricity from water that is already falling.

No civil work required No dam Installed in a day

Norway has always run on water. Behind farms and forests, small streams still fall unused. We turn them into clean power, gently, and share the value with the people who live there.

What we do

From a falling stream to power in the grid.

We take care of the whole journey, so waterfall owners do not have to become power producers to earn from their water: they receive a steady royalty income while we carry the cost and the risk.

Find and develop

We look for streams with the right fall and flow, do the surveys and prepare the licence application, including a full environmental impact assessment.

No civil work required

No dam, no concrete, no tunnels and no blasting. A compact powerhouse, a siphon intake and a light pipeline over the terrain. About a week on site.

Operate and sell

Plants run by remote control with regular inspections. We look after maintenance and sell the power, so it creates the most value.

Share the value

Waterfall owners earn royalties from every kilowatt-hour the plant sells, with no investment and no risk on their side. Local contractors do the required work, so the economic value stays in the local community.

Our way of building

No civil work required.

One idea shapes everything we do. If a plant needs no dam, no concrete and no blasting, it is quiet for the neighbours, gentle on nature and simple and profitable for the owner.

DamConcrete in the riverTunnelsBlastingLong construction

Quiet for neighbours

No long building site and no blasting. The plant goes up in about a week, so life in the local community carries on as normal.

Gentle on nature

Nothing is dammed and nothing is dug into the river. The water, the fish and the banks stay as they are, and the plant can be removed in about a day at the end of its long life.

Simple for owners

Less to approve, less to disturb and quicker to build, so income starts sooner. Your land stays your land, and the whole scheme can be undone.

How it works

Follow one drop of water.

Scroll to follow it from the stream, through our plant and out into the grid. The river keeps flowing the whole way.

IntakeTop of the fall PowerhouseBottom of the fall Generator 1234
Step 1 · The intake

A gentle sip from the stream

A siphon head sits in an existing pool, with a screen to keep fish and debris out. No dam, no concrete in the river, no civil work. If the water level drops, the flow simply stops.

High up on the stream
Step 2 · The pipeline

Down the hillside, without civil work

The water runs through a lightweight pipeline that rests on the terrain, with no trenches, tunnels or blasting. We only take what is above a protected minimum flow, so the river keeps plenty of water.

Resting on the terrain
Step 3 · The powerhouse

One container does the work

At the bottom, the water spins a turbine in the powerhouse, which drives the generator next to it and turns the height of the fall into electricity. The water goes straight back into the river. The container is painted to blend into local nature.

One container
Step 4 · The grid

Clean power for local homes

A short underground cable connects the plant to the existing power line. The electricity flows to homes and businesses nearby, day and night, all year round.

Short buried cable
Our approach in numbers

Small on the landscape. Big for the valley.

Every plant we build follows the same light-touch idea, and it pays off for the people who own the water.

0civil works

No dam, no concrete in the water, no tunnels, no blasting

1week

Roughly the time a power plant needs to be installed on site, so income starts sooner

1day

To remove a power plant at the end of its life

Built to leave the river alone

Good for the climate. Careful with nature.

Clean power should not cost a river its character. We design each plant to stay out of the way, and we share the environmental assessment so everyone can see how.

Water always stays in the river

We only take water above a protected minimum flow, set for each plant. When the river is low, the plant stops.

No dam, no concrete in the water

A siphon intake sits in an existing pool. Nothing is dammed or diverted, and fish can move as before.

A very small footprint

The pipeline rests on the terrain, the cable is buried and the powerhouse is one container painted to blend into local nature.

Registered nature is kept clear

We carefully check the local environment and keep all work, tracks and machines away from registered meadows, rare plants and habitats.

Built to be undone

When a plant reaches the end of its life, the equipment can be removed in about a day and the site is restored immediately.

Open about the impact

Every plant gets a full environmental impact assessment, shared openly with the authorities and everyone affected before decisions are made.

For waterfall owners

Your waterfall. Our job to make it work.

If you own a waterfall in Norway, you may be sitting on clean power and a steady income. We make it simple, and we carry the work and the cost.

  • The waterfall stays yours. You lease the rights to us. The land is still yours.
  • We do the heavy lifting. Licensing, financing, construction, operation and sales are on us.
  • You earn a steady income. Royalties from every kilowatt-hour sold, agreed up front in writing, with no investment and no risk on your side.
  • You see everything first. We share the full environmental assessment and technical concept before you decide.
  • The community benefits. We use local contractors wherever we can, so work and income stay local.
1

A first conversation

We talk about your waterfall, your land and what matters to you.

2

A site check

We look at fall, flow and nature, and tell you honestly if it is a good fit.

3

An agreement

We agree terms together and write them down, simply and clearly.

4

The licence

We prepare the application and the environmental assessment, and handle the contact with the authorities.

5

Construction

A light build with local contractors, usually done in about a week.

6

Clean power flows

We operate the plant and you receive your royalties, year after year.

Our power plants

See where we are building.

Explore our plants and applications on a map of Norway.

In application

Our first plant

Name to be released once the consultation period begins. A plant in Telemark, designed with no civil work required.

Open the map

Why Rinn

A small stream with a big job.

Rinn is a thin, steady trickle of water, the kind that runs through every valley. That is the water we work with.

Our symbol is the fossekall, the dipper, Norway's national bird. It lives beside fast, clean water, exactly where we build, and it reminds us to leave the stream as we found it.

Get in touch

Own a waterfall? Let's talk.

Tell us where it is and what you are thinking. We will reply personally and tell you honestly whether it could work.

hello@rinn.energy
Power plants

Our plants across Norway.

Select a plant on the map to see how it is designed, what it produces and where it stands. Every plant follows the same idea: no civil work required.

In operationIn application