Tyssedal is a typical monotown, depending upon the energy received from the hydropower station. The ilmenite smelter "Tinfos Titan and Iron" (TTI) (owned by Tinfos) is located here and is the largest employer in the village. The smelter was converted from making aluminium in the late 1980s. The first hydropower station in Tyssedal, Tysso I is today part of the Norwegian Museum of Hydropower and Industry. Tyssedal grew up around this smelter in the early-twentieth century.