The history of Laugstol

The image shows the building where our business began in 1873. Timber merchants Nils Kittilsen and Hans Carl Hansen purchased “Møller-saga” from the estate of lawyer Halv. Paulsen. The property included several old sawmill sites that drew energy from Bollefossen, including “Tiedemand-saga”, “Laugstol-saga” and “Dam- eller Skruesaga”.

The founders wanted to make optimal use of the property and its hydropower, and therefore established Laugstol Interessentskab AS. Engineer Gunnar Knudsen — later a member of parliament and Prime Minister of Norway — joined as a shareholder and chairman of the board.

However, the sawmill proved to be unprofitable. In 1878, the owners therefore decided to expand a small wood pulp mill that had been in operation since 1874. The new wood pulp mill was equipped with two turbines and four grinding machines. A later adjustment of the dams for Hjellevannet in 1898 increased the head to 15½ feet, inspiring investment in new turbines and a significant increase in production.

In 1885, Norway’s first electricity works, Laugstol Brug, was established in connection with the wood pulp mill. This was the first facility in Norway to produce and sell electricity to subscribers, and it is considered the country’s first grid company. The ambition was to provide lighting for the company itself, as well as for the canal company’s lock operations in Skien.

After the city fire in 1886, a Siemens dynamo was installed, supplying energy to 120 lamps. In 1889, the facility was expanded with two dynamos supplying more than 1,000 lamps. Ten years later, an accumulator battery was acquired, making it possible to supply 800–900 lamps.

The company supplied electricity for street lighting in central Skien, the town hall, the church, the public baths, the fire station, the harbour authority and several private businesses.

Gunnar Knudsen was an energetic initiator and led Laugstol Brug. He played a key role in the establishment of Skienfjordens kommunale kraftselskap, SKK, in 1912, which took over parts of Laugstol Brug’s water rights.

SKK started an electrical installation business, delivering lighting and heating to private customers and businesses in the district. This part of the company grew and later became a separate company, SKK Installasjon AS.

When SKK merged with the electricity utilities in Vestfold in 2001 under the name Skagerak Energi AS, SKK Installasjon AS changed its name to Skagerak Elektro AS.

In 2015, Skagerak Energi reduced its ownership stake in the company to 33%. Telemark Group AS now owns 51%, while employees own 16%. Telemark Group is an investment company with owners who have experience from Norway’s energy-intensive industry, and is based in Skien.

In connection with this change, Skagerak Elektro AS changed its name to Laugstol AS. The company’s strategy is to be a significant contractor within power supply, electrical installation and automation.

In the following years, Skagerak Elektro AS grew from being a pure electrical installation business into a provider of services and products for grid companies, power producers, transport infrastructure and railways. Its geographical reach developed to cover all of Norway, while maintaining a strong base in Vestfold and Telemark.

In 2010, Laugstol Energiservice AS became part of the group. Building automation and energy efficiency services were developed and delivered across Southern Norway. In 2026, Laugstol Energiservice AS was divested. Drammen Automasjon was acquired in 2018, strengthening the company’s focus on industrial automation and control, regulation and monitoring services throughout Norway.

In 2022, the company acquired 51% ownership of Energianlegg AS in Oslo. This gave Laugstol increased capacity and expertise within distribution grids, regional distribution grids and parts of the transmission grid. The company now has three locations: Porsgrunn, Stokke and Drammen.