| Shoreham Power Station | |
|---|---|
 Shoreham Power Station pictured in 2008 | |
 | |
| Country | England |
| Location | Southwick, West Sussex |
| Coordinates | 50°49′46″N0°13′50″W / 50.82944°N 0.23056°W |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction cost | £150 million |
| Chimneys | 1 (100 m (330 ft)) |
| External links | |
| Commons | Related media on Commons |
Shoreham Power Station is a 420MWe [1] combined cycle gas-fired power station in Southwick, West Sussex. It was built on the site of the Shoreham B Power Station.
Brighton was one of the first towns in the UK to have a continuous supply of electricity. In 1882 Robert Hammond established the Hammond Electric Light Company and on the 27 February 1882 he opened the Gloucester Road Power Station. It was set up in the yard of Reed's Iron Foundry, and consisted of a Brush dynamo, driven by a Robey engine. This was used to power sixteen arc lamps on a 1.75 mi (2.82 km) circuit around the town centre, operating from dusk until 11pm every day. In spring 1883 another dynamo was brought into operation, powered by a Marshall engine, powering a 40 lamp circuit.
In 1885 the Hammond Electric Light Company went into voluntary liquidation, and the system was bought by the Brighton Electric Light Company who registered on 16 December 1885. It further extended the system, building a new station on the same site, consisting of three 40-lamp Brush dynamos, powered by a Fowler engine. This station was later extended by another two Brush dynamos and another Fowler engine.
By January 1886 the company's system had increased to include 1,000 filament lamps on 8 mi (13 km) of circuit, and in 1887, it was decided for the company to provide a day time service. A 16-lamp dynamo and a Hornsby engine were installed to take the day-time load. In the same year, the system was switched from DC to AC, and electricity was generated at 1,800 volts (V) using single-phase Elwell Parker and Mordey alternators. Voltage was reduced to 100 V by Lowrie-Hall transformers mounted on customers' rooftops. By 1887, 34 arc lamps and 1,500 filament lamps were being supplied by five Brush dynamos, on a 15 mi (24 km) system of overhead lines. In 1890 the company became the Brighton and Hove Electric Light Company. [2]
The local authority, the Brighton Corporation, had obtained a provisional order allowing them to generate electricity in 1883 but had never the need to exercise it. However, in 1890 it acquired the site for a power station and opened its own municipal North Road Power Station on 14 September 1891. It supplied at 115 V DC, using four Willans-Goolden generating sets, two at 45 kilowatts (kW) and two at 120 kW, provided with steam by three Lancashire boilers. Another two Willans engines driving 240 kW dynamos were added later. In 1894, the Brighton Corporation bought out the Brighton and Hove Electric Light Company.
By 1904 the North Road station's capacity was at 5,935 kW, with six Lancashire boilers and ten Babcock & Wilcox boilers, steaming nineteen Willans engines, coupled directly to DC generators. It was decided a larger station would be needed, and the site was chosen at Southwick. When this station was opened in 1906 the old station became less required, and so in 1908 North Road station was closed down. [2] [3]
The construction on the Southwick power station commenced in 1904, its site chosen because of its position on the harbour, meaning plentiful supply of water for cooling, and access to seaborne coal. The first phase of the station opened in June 1906, with a generating capacity of 5,470 kW. The station was given various modifications and extensions, and by 1946 it had a capacity of 190 megawatts (MW). [3]
By 1961 the station had an installed capacity of 190 MW, comprising 1 × 30 MW, 2 × 37.5 MW and 1 × 50 MW turbo-alternators. [4] [5] The turbines were supplied with steam from 10 boilers: 4 × 160,000 lb/hr (20.2 kg/s), 4 × 215,000 lb/hr (27.1 kg/s) and 2 × 350,000 lb/hr (44.1 kg/s). The boilers were chain grate, pulverised coal and retort stoker designs. The total steam output was 2,200,000 lb/hr (277.2 kg/s) and the steam conditions at the turbine stop valves were 350/650 psi (24.1/44.8 bar) and 399/454 °C. [4] [5] Seawater was used for condensing and cooling.
The output, in GWh, of the A station over the period 1961-75 was as follows: [5] [4] [6]
 | Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
The A station was closed on 15 March 1976 with a generating capacity of 53 MW. [7]
In the early 1940s it became clear that a large power station was going to be needed to provide electricity for the south east area. The Southwick site was selected by the national power board, the Central Electricity Board. In 1946 Brighton Corporation was ordered to proceed with the construction of the new station, consisting of six 52.5 MW generating sets. The first pile was driven on 25 November 1947. During the construction of the station, on 1 April 1948, the electric supply industry in the United Kingdom was nationalised, and the British Electricity Authority took over responsibility of the site from Brighton Corporation. On 26 June 1950 consent was given for the second section of the station, but it was decided that the last two generating sets would have a capacity of 60 MW, and sets 1 to 4 uprated to 55.5 MW. The station's six units were commissioned from December 1952 to September 1958, and the station had a total generating capacity of 342 MW. [3] The chimneys were 350 feet high and were 32 feet internal diameter at the base reducing to 24 feet internal diameter at the top. The demolition of one of its chimneys was featured in a 2009 advert for EDF Energy.
By 1961 the station had an installed capacity of 342 MW, comprising 4 × 55.5 MW and 2 × 60 MW turbo-alternators. [4] [5] The 55.5 MW machines were decommissioned in 1975. [5] The turbines were supplied with steam from 11 pulverised coal boilers each with a capacity of 320,000 lb/hr (40.3 kg/s) giving a total steam output of 3,520,000 lb/hr (443.5 kg/s). The steam conditions at the turbine stop valves were 900 psi (62.1 bar) and 482 °C. [5] [4] Seawater was used for condensing and cooling. Electrically, Generators 1 - 4 fed into the 132kV network at Fishersgate 132kV Substation. Generators 5 - 6 fed in to the local 33kV network. The B Station site supplies were fed from four individual 33kV supply cables from the A Station 33kV board.
The output, in GWh, for the B station over the period 1961-84 was as follows: [5] [6]
| Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
The gas-fired station is built on the site of the B station, and named after nearby Shoreham-by-Sea.
It was constructed by Alstom and Mott MacDonald, and opened in the summer of 2000 [8] costing £150m. It was originally owned by South Coast Power Ltd, a consortium of Scottish Power and SEEBOARD (owned by Central and South West Corporation). It was owned and operated by Drax Generation Enterprise Ltd, [1] before being sold in February 2021 to Vitol (VPI Holdings Ltd) [9]
It is a 420 megawatt (MW) CCGT-type power that runs on natural gas. [1] There is one Alstom gas turbine from which the exhaust gases heat an Stork heat recovery steam generator which drives an ABB steam turbine, in a single-shaft configuration.[ citation needed ] Warm waste water is released into the sea. [10] [11] The chimney is 100m tall, and a local landmark. The Monarch's Way footpath passes the station which backs on to Southwick Beach.
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Great Yarmouth Power Station is combined cycle gas turbine power station on South Denes Road in Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England, with a maximum output of 420 MW electricity, opened in 2001. It is built on the site of an oil-fired power station, built in 1958 and closed and demolished in the 1990s. A coal-fired power station was built in Great Yarmouth in 1894 and operated until 1961. The station is operated by RWE.
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The Norwich power stations were a sequence of electricity generating stations that provided electric power to the City of Norwich and the wider area between 1893 and 1986. The first station in Duke Street began operating in 1893, a new power station at Thorpe was in service from 1926 to 1967, this was supplemented with a 'high pressure' station, 1937–1975, and finally a gas turbine station operated from 1964–1986.
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.
Leicester power stations are a series of electricity generating stations that have provided electric power to the City of Leicester and the wider area from 1894. The first station, located within Aylestone gas works, supplied electricity for street lighting. The city's new electric tram system was supplied from 1904 by a station at Lero which operated until 1930. A large coal-fired power station was constructed at Freemans Meadow in 1922 and was operational until 1976. Finally a gas turbine power plant was commissioned in 1976.
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.
Portsmouth power station supplied electricity to Portsmouth and the surrounding area from 1894 to until 1977. The power station was built and operated by Portsmouth Corporation and started supplying electricity on 6 June 1894. It was located in St Mary Street and was redeveloped several times: including major rebuilds in 1927–29 and in 1938–1952, and expanded into a larger plot. The power station was closed in 1977; the two chimneys were demolished in 1981 and the main buildings in 1982.
Sculcoates power station supplied electricity to Kingston upon Hull and the wider East Yorkshire area from 1898. An earlier 1893 station in Dagger Lane had operated public lighting in Hull Old Town. Sculcoates power station was built and operated by Kingston upon Hull Corporation on a site in Sculcoates Lane adjacent to the Beverley and Barmston Drain. The power station was increased in size as demand for electricity grew, it was redeveloped several times: including major rebuilds in 1927–29 and in 1938–1952. The power station was closed in 1976 and was subsequently demolished.
The Thornhill power station generated and supplied electricity to the town of Dewsbury and the wider regional area from 1902 to 1982, and again from 1998. The first generating station on the site was owned and operated by the Yorkshire Electric Power Company. Following nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948 Thornhill power station was operated by a succession of state owned bodies. The power station was redeveloped with new plant in 1915, 1925, 1932–37 and 1950–54. The coal-fired steam station was decommissioned in 1982, and was subsequently demolished. A gas turbine power station on the site was commissioned in 1998.
Salisbury power station supplied electricity to the English city of Salisbury and the surrounding area from 1898 to c. 1970. It was owned and operated by Salisbury Electric Light and Supply Company Limited prior to the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. The power station was redeveloped several times to incorporate new plant to replace retired equipment. The facilities included a water driven turbine.
Wolverhampton power station, also known as Commercial Road power station, supplied electricity to the Borough of Wolverhampton, England and the surrounding area from 1895 to 1976. It was redeveloped in several stages to meet growing demand for electricity: including the addition of new plant in 1902 to 1908, 1925 and 1942. The power station was initially owned and operated by Wolverhampton Corporation, but was transferred to the West Midlands Joint Electricity Authority in 1928. The British Electricity Authority assumed ownership at nationalisation in 1948. Wolverhampton power station was decommissioned in 1976.
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