Northampton Power Station

Northampton Power Station
Northampton Power Station
	Northampton Power Station; Derelict turbine hall on 16 February 2010
Country	England
Location	Northamptonshire, East Midlands
Coordinates	52°13′52″N0°53′09″W / 52.23116°N 0.88577°W Coordinates: 52°13′52″N0°53′09″W / 52.23116°N 0.88577°W
Status	Decommissioned and demolished
Construction began	(1890: Bridge Street), 1916
Commission date	(1891: Bridge Street), 1919
Decommission date	1976
Owner(s)	As operator
Operator(s)	The Northampton Electric Light and Power Company ; (1889–1948); British Electricity Authority ; (1948–1955); Central Electricity Authority ; (1955–1957); Central Electricity Generating Board ; (1958–1976)
Thermal power station
Primary fuel	Coal
Turbine technology	Steam turbines and reciprocating engines
Cooling towers	2
Power generation
Make and model	C.A. Parsons and Metropolitan Vickers
Units decommissioned	all
Nameplate capacity	6.84 MW (1923), 31.2 MW (1931), 102 MW (1958)
Annual net output	(See table and graph below)
External links
Commons	Related media on Commons
	[ edit on Wikidata]; grid reference SP761598

Last updated October 18, 2022

Northampton power station (also known as Nunn Mills power station or Hardingstone Junction power station) was an electricity generating station in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England, which began operation for the Northampton Electric Light and Power Company Limited (NELPC) in 1919 and generated power until closure in 1976.

Location

The power station was located on the south bank of the River Nene just south-east of the town centre. It was also known as Nunn Mills power station being the name of a mill located on that part of the river, though none of the mill seems to remain.^[1] It was also known as Hardingstone Junction power station named after the nearby railway junction of that name. Two large concrete cooling towers east of the main turbine halls were demolished shortly after closure. However, the derelict and graffiti ^[2] covered main buildings were still standing 37 years later in 2012. A large storage area for coal was located east of the generating plant and delivered by rail using a branch of the Northampton to Bedford railway line.

History

The Northampton Electric Light and Power Company Limited was established in April 1889 and the supply of current began on 11 March 1891 from Bridge Street power station (52°14'09"N 0°53'47"W) in Northampton town centre.^[3]

In 1897 the plant had a generating capacity of 425 kW and the maximum load was 182 kW.^[4] A total of 114.676 MWh of electricity was sold which provided an income to the company of £3,032-2-7. The growth in electricity supply is demonstrated in the table.^[4]

Number of 8 candle power lamps
Year	Lamps
1893	4,600
1894	5,300
1895	6,130
1896	8,014
1897	11,084

In 1904 the Northampton Corporation planned to purchase the undertaking but negotiations failed, however, it was noted that the local authority were satisfied with the service the company were providing.^[3] Electricity supplies were initially limited to the centre of Northampton but an extension order in 1904 gave the company powers to extend supplies outside the borough.^[3]

Hardingstone Junction power station

By 1913 the growth in demand for electricity was such that the company sought to build a new generating station at Hardingstone Junction. Work on the new station began in 1916 and operation began in 1919.^[3]

By 1923 the company operated both power stations. The Bridge Street station generated Direct Current electricity.^[5] The plant at Bridge Street comprised 2 × 220 kW, 1 × 400 kW and 2 × 600 kW reciprocating engines and generators and 1 × 300 kW turbo-alternator, a total of 2,340 kW. These were supplied with up to 57,000 pounds per hour (7.18 kg/s) of steam from coal-fired boilers.^[5]

The Hardingstone Junction/Nunn Mills power station generated alternating current and comprised 1 × 500 kW, 1 × 1,000 kW and 1 × 3,000 kW turbo-alternators supplied with up to 86,200 lb/hr (10.86 kg/s) of steam from coal-fired boilers.^[5]

The total amount of electricity generated in 1923 was 10.947 GWh and there were 13,575 connections to the system. The amount of electricity sold was 8.468 GWh producing a revenue of £94,255. The surplus revenue over expenses was £58,457.^[5]

New plant 1926–1956

From 1926 to 1929, a new low pressure plant was installed at Hardingstone Junction, this was followed by an intermediate pressure plant in 1936-52 and a high pressure plant in 1956.^[6] By 1959 the plant comprised the following.^[6]

Boilers:

2 × 45,000 lb/hr (5.67 kg/s) Stirling boilers, 210 psi at 650 °F (14.48 bar at 343 °C)
2 × 60,000 lb/hr (7.56 kg/s) Stirling boilers, 210 psi at 700 °F (14.48 bat at 371 °C)
4 × 150,000 lb/hr (18.90 kg/s) Stirling boilers, 425 psi at 810 °F (29.31 bar at 432 °C)
2 × 175,000 lb/hr (22.05 kg/s) Simon Carves boilers, 425 psi at 825 °F (29.31 bar at 441 °C)
2 × 150,000 lb/hr (18.90 kg/s) Bennis boilers, 625 psi at 860 °F (43.1 bar at 460 °C)

Turbo-alternators:

1 × 10 MW Metropolitan Vickers
1 × 12.5 MW Metropolitan Vickers
3 × 30 MW Parsons
1 × 30 MW Brush

Cooling water was abstracted from the River Nene, there was also one Mouchel and one Moss concrete cooling towers, each had a capacity of 2 million gallons per hour (2.53 m³/s) with a cooling range of 20 °F (11 °C).^[6]

In 1926 the station was supplying electricity to the railway works at Wolverton, now part of Milton Keynes.^[7]

The company continued to expand its area of supply. For example, in 1927 there was 144 miles of high-tension lines and 108 miles low-tension distribution mains.^[8] These supplied electricity to Bletchley (20 miles from Northampton), Stony Stratford, Towcester and Long Buckby and intermediate villages. By 1936 there were 566 miles of high voltage lines, and 414 miles of low voltage distribution mains.^[9]

At the end of the 1930s the electricity supply arrangements for Northampton were unusual. Outside of London all towns with a population of over 60,000 were supplied by municipally owned electricity undertakings. Northampton, Newcastle and Bournemouth were the only exceptions where company undertakings supplied electricity.^[10]

Nationalisation

The Electricity Act 1947 nationalised the electricity industry and established the British Electricity Authority, which became the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) in 1955.^[11] The BEA took over the electricity generating capability of the NELPC and promoted efficient generation, transmission and distribution and cheaper prices in rural areas. It also standardised the system and electrical fittings and had 11 divisions and 12 area boards. The electricity distribution and sales part of the NELPC became part of the East Midlands Electricity Board (EMEB). The CEA was in turn dissolved by the Electricity Act 1957 and replaced by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) and the Electricity Council.^[11]

The generating capacity, electricity output and thermal efficiency were as shown in the table.^[5]^[6]^[12]^[13]^[14]^[15]

Northampton power station electricity capacity and output
Year	Net generating capability, MW	Electricity supplied, GWh	Thermal efficiency, %
1923	6.84	10.95
1928		26.5
1931	31.5	44.5
1935		97.5
1936		116.0
1938		107.331
1939		108.0
1944		181.0
1945		176.0
1946		225.68	20.07
1954	102	297.895	21.78
1955	102	359.069	22.39
1956	102	319.976	22.12
1957	102	308.059	22.22
1958	102	243.227	22.40
1961	130	259.511	21.58
1962	143	252.07	22.0
1963	143	358.168	21.41
1967	143	315.22	20.58
1972	120.5	173.249	19.72

The electricity output from Northampton power station, in GWh, is shown in the chart:

In 1958 the Northampton electricity district supplied an area of 201 square miles and a population of 144,000. The amount of electricity sold and the number and types of consumers was as follows:^[6]

Type of Consumer	No. of consumers	Electricity sold, MWh
Domestic	46,638	69,482
Commercial	5,283	30,026
Farms	613	6,034
Industrial	661	71,872
Public lighting	50	2,029
Total	53,245	179,437

The power station was closed on 25 October 1976.^[16]

Redevelopment

The site was designated for redevelopment as housing^[17] for several years but remained an eyesore next to the modern Avon Cosmetics offices.^[1] In May 2012, the University of Northampton announced plans to establish a new riverside campus in Northampton town centre on the power station site.^[18] The site would be within the Northampton Waterside Enterprise Zone (known simply as Northampton Waterside).^[19]

On 18 December 2013, Northampton Borough Council granted outline planning permission for the £330m development of the town centre campus. An application for full planning permission was lodged in 2014 by the university, which has 14,500 students. The campus welcomed its first students in September 2018.

Related Research Articles

Belvedere Power Station was an oil-fired 480 MW power station on the river Thames at Belvedere, south-east London. It was commissioned in 1960 and operated for 26 years. It was decommissioned in 1986 and was subsequently demolished in 1993–94. The site has been redeveloped as industrial warehouses, although the fuelling jetty is extant.

West Ham Power Station was a coal-fired power station on Bow Creek at Canning Town, in east London. It was often referred to informally as Canning Town Power Station.

Shoreham Power Station is a 420MWe combined cycle gas-fired power station in Southwick, West Sussex. It was built on the site of the Brighton B Power Station.

Rotherham power station was a coal-fired power station sited close to the centre of Rotherham in South Yorkshire.

Doncaster Power Station refers to two coal-fired electricity generating stations situated in the centre of Doncaster in South Yorkshire, England. Doncaster A provided electricity to the town from 1900 to 1958, and the B station from 1953 to 1983.

Hackney Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated at Lea Bridge on the River Lee Navigation in London.

Padiham Power Station was a coal-fired power station in Padiham, east Lancashire, England, which began operation in 1926 and generated power from 1927 until it was closed in 1993.

Hayle Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated at the mouth of the River Hayle, at Hayle in Cornwall, South West England.

Southampton Power Station was a coal fired power station built by Southampton corporation that operated between 1904 and 1977.

Ribble Power Station was a coal-fired electricity generating station on the River Ribble in Penwortham near Preston, Lancashire, England. The station was built by the Corporation of Preston to replace a small privately-run generating station in the town. It supplied electricity to Preston and the surrounding area from 1923 until 1976. The station was expanded with new equipment in 1943–47 which remained in operation until the power station was closed in 1976 and was subsequently demolished.

Blackburn power stations are a series of electricity generating stations that have provided electric power to the town of Blackburn and the wider area from 1895 to the present. The first station in Jubilee Street, Blackburn began operating in 1895. A new larger station known as Blackburn East or Whitebirk power station was commissioned in 1921 and was rebuilt in stages over the period 1942 to 1955. Whitebirk station closed in 1976. The 60 MW Blackburn Mill Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) power station has generated electricity since 2002. The Blackburn energy from waste (EfW) plant is currently (2020) being planned.

Lincoln power stations were a sequence of electricity generating stations that provided electric power to the City of Lincoln and the wider area between 1898 and 1977. The first station was built by Lincoln Corporation in 1898 on Brayford Wharf. During the First World War the engineering company Clayton and Shuttleworth built a power station in Spa Road to meet its own electricity needs. This private station was bought by Lincoln Corporation in 1918 and was expanded to meet rising demand and supplied electricity until it was demolished in 1953. A final power station was built on the Spa Road site over the period 1947–57 and operated until it was decommissioned in 1977.

Carlisle power stations were two electricity generating stations that supplied electricity to Carlisle and the surrounding area from 1899 until 1980. The first power station (1899–1927) was in the centre of the city near Nelson Bridge, and the second larger station was at Willow Holme North-West of the city (1923–1980).

Stourport power stations were two electricity generating stations that supplied electricity to Stourport-on-Severn Worcestershire and to the wider West Midlands area from 1927 to 1984. The two stations, A (1927–78) and B (1950–84), were collocated on a joint site adjacent to the River Severn south of Stourport-on-Severn.

The Lancaster power stations provided electricity to the Lancashire town and city of Lancaster and the surrounding area from 1894 to 1976. The first power station was built and operated by Lancaster Corporation and started generating electricity in April 1894. The second power station was built during the First World War near the Lune Aqueduct to provide electric power for a munitions factory. When the factory closed after the war the power station was purchased by the corporation to provide electric power throughout its supply area.

Lombard Road power station supplied electricity to the Battersea area of South-East London from 1901 to 1972. It was owned and operated by the Borough of Battersea until the nationalisation of the electricity supply industry in 1948. The power station was redeveloped several times: including the incorporation of new plant in the 1910s and the 1930s. The station was decommissioned in 1972.

Gravesend power station was built by the Gravesend Corporation in 1902–03 to supply the local demand for electricity for lighting. It was built to the west of the municipal gas works, south east of the basin on the Thames and Medway canal. The power station operated until 1970 the buildings were reused but were demolished in 1995.

Halifax power station supplied electricity to the town of Halifax and the wider area from 1894 to the 1960s. It was owned and operated by Halifax Corporation until the nationalisation of the electricity supply industry in 1948. The power station was redeveloped several times and at its peak had a generating capacity of 48 MW.

Llanelly power station, also known as North Dock power station, supplied electricity to the town of Llanelly and the surrounding area from 1910 to the late 1960s. The power station was owned and operated by a succession of companies, including the Llanelly and District Electric Supply Company Limited, prior to the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. The power station was redeveloped in the 1920s to meet the increased demand for electricity.

Thanet power station, also known as St. Peter’s power station, supplied electricity to the towns of Broadstairs and Margate and other locations on the Isle of Thanet, Kent, England from 1901 to 1964. The station was owned and operated by the Isle of Thanet Electric Supply Company Limited until the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. The coal-fired power station had an ultimate electricity generating capacity of 6 MW.

References

1 2 "Waterside Restoration Master Plan 2004 Appendix" (PDF). Retrieved 17 February 2010.
↑ "Illegal graffiti gallery will soon be rubble". Northampton Chronicle & Echo. 2 November 2007. Archived from the original on 3 May 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
1 2 3 4 "Northampton Electric Light and Power (p. 8)". The Times. 8 April 1948.
1 2 Garcke, Emile (1898). Manual of Electrical Undertakings vol. 3. London: P. S. King & son.
1 2 3 4 5 Electricity Commission (1925). Electricity Supply - 1920-1923. London: HMSO. pp. 192–95, 460–65.
1 2 3 4 5 Garrett, Frederick C., ed. (1959). Garcke's Manual of Electricity Supply vol. 56. London: Electrical Press. pp. A-81–82, A-129, B-211.
↑ "Wolverton Works Chronology" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
↑ "Northampton Electric Light & Power (p. 24)". The Times. 22 February 1928.
↑ "Northampton Electric Light and Power (p. 23)". The Times. 2 March 1937.
↑ Hannah, Leslie (1979). Electricity before Nationalisation. London: Macmillan. p. 221. ISBN 0333220862.
1 2 Electricity Council (1987). Electricity Supply in the United Kingdom: a Chronology. London: Electricity Council. pp. 60, 69, 73. ISBN 085188105X.
↑ The Times, Northampton Electric Light and Power, Company reports various dates
↑ CEGB (1972). CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1972. London: CEGB. p. 13.
↑ CEGB Annual report and Accounts, 1961, 1962 & 1963
↑ Electricity Commission, Generation of Electricity in Great Britain year ended 31st December 1946. London: HMSO, 1947.
↑ "Hansard Coal-fired power stations". Hansard. 16 January 1974. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
↑ "Building the Future". Northampton Chronicle & Echo. 23 November 2006. Archived from the original on 3 May 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
↑ "University plans £300m new campus". BBC News. 25 May 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2012.
↑ "SEMLEP Northampton Waterside Enterprise Zone". Northampton Borough Council. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 30 May 2012.

[WMP-1] 1 2 "Waterside Restoration Master Plan 2004 Appendix" (PDF). Retrieved 17 February 2010.

[C&E-2] "Illegal graffiti gallery will soon be rubble". Northampton Chronicle & Echo. 2 November 2007. Archived from the original on 3 May 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2010.

[:0-3] 1 2 3 4 "Northampton Electric Light and Power (p. 8)". The Times. 8 April 1948.

[:4-4] 1 2 Garcke, Emile (1898). Manual of Electrical Undertakings vol. 3. London: P. S. King & son.

[:1-5] 1 2 3 4 5 Electricity Commission (1925). Electricity Supply - 1920-1923. London: HMSO. pp. 192–95, 460–65.

[:2-6] 1 2 3 4 5 Garrett, Frederick C., ed. (1959). Garcke's Manual of Electricity Supply vol. 56. London: Electrical Press. pp. A-81–82, A-129, B-211.

[7] "Wolverton Works Chronology" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 17 February 2010.

[8] "Northampton Electric Light & Power (p. 24)". The Times. 22 February 1928.

[9] "Northampton Electric Light and Power (p. 23)". The Times. 2 March 1937.

[10] Hannah, Leslie (1979). Electricity before Nationalisation. London: Macmillan. p. 221. ISBN 0333220862.

[:3-11] 1 2 Electricity Council (1987). Electricity Supply in the United Kingdom: a Chronology. London: Electricity Council. pp. 60, 69, 73. ISBN 085188105X.

[12] The Times, Northampton Electric Light and Power, Company reports various dates

[13] CEGB (1972). CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1972. London: CEGB. p. 13.

[14] CEGB Annual report and Accounts, 1961, 1962 & 1963

[15] Electricity Commission, Generation of Electricity in Great Britain year ended 31st December 1946. London: HMSO, 1947.

[16] "Hansard Coal-fired power stations". Hansard. 16 January 1974. Retrieved 4 May 2020.

[C&E2-17] "Building the Future". Northampton Chronicle & Echo. 23 November 2006. Archived from the original on 3 May 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2010.

[18] "University plans £300m new campus". BBC News. 25 May 2012. Retrieved 29 May 2012.

[19] "SEMLEP Northampton Waterside Enterprise Zone". Northampton Borough Council. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 30 May 2012.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]