[2] Svartsengi power station provides hot water for the district heating system of the entire Reykjanes Peninsula, including Keflavík, Njarðvík, Vogar, Garður, Sandgerði and Grindavík – more than 21,000 households.

[3][4] Svartsengi has also produced spin-offs; one of these side products is one of Iceland's most popular bathing resorts, the Blue Lagoon, and another is the first renewable methanol plant, Carbon Recycling International.

[2][5][6] In the beginning of 1976, Svartsengi power station was completely liquid-dominated, but it changed into a liquid dominated with a steam cap geothermal system.

[8] The 2023–2024 Sundhnúkur eruptions caused major disruption to the power station, which was threatened by swarms of earthquakes and repeated lava flows in its near vicinity.

[12] In response to the threat of lava flows, the Icelandic parliament authorised the construction of protective earth barriers around the power station and the Blue Lagoon,[13] which were largely in place by the time of the 8 February eruption.

[14][15][16] Both an increase in height of the barriers and water cooling strategies had to be applied, in attempts to protect local infrastructure including the power station, in later eruptions.