Kadaň was one of the first towns in the country to start and develop electric power generation at the beginning of the 20th century. A project for power production and distribution was implemented from 1905. A hydroelectric power plant was built on the Ohře river near the village of Želina in 1908. It included the construction of a weir and a tunnel in a rock bringing water to the plant. Electricity was then distributed by a cable to transformers (small brick structures) to supply Kadaň.