London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited

Last updated
London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited
Company typePublic limited company
IndustryEnergy: Electricity supply
PredecessorSee text
FoundedFebruary 1935
Defunct31 March 1948
FateNationalisation
SuccessorBritish Electricity Authority, London Electricity Board
Headquarters
London
Area served
Central and West London
Key people
see text
ServicesElectricity supply

London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited was an electricity supply company that operated in central and west London from 1935 to 1948. It was founded to acquire, combine and coordinate the electricity distribution interests of six west London electricity companies.

Contents

History

The London Power Company was established in 1925 by ten London electricity undertakings to centralise the generation of electricity at Battersea Power Station. [1] The constituent companies continued as electricity distribution and sales undertakings.

In 1934 six electricity supply companies in west and central London wished to bring together in one organisation the distribution resources of their constituent companies. This was to standardise and improve the effectiveness and efficiency of electricity supplies in a single organisation. [2] The six constituent companies were the:

The London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited was registered as a public company in February 1935. This was under the provisions of the London Electricity (No. 2) Act 1925 (14 & 15 Geo. 5. c. lxiii). The undertaking's declared policy was: [3]

  1. To build up a single effective organisation in place of the six existing organisations;
  2. To secure as soon as possible the greatest uniformity in tariffs on the lowest basis attainable;
  3. To make the best possible speed towards the completion of the engineering programme of the companies in adopting the standard system laid down by the Central Electricity Board.

The administrative mechanism to achieve integration was for the Charing Cross Electricity Supply Company to take over the other five companies and to change its name to Central London Electricity Limited. With effect from 1 January 1937 the whole of the shares of Central London Electricity Limited were held by the non-statutory body London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited. [4] Compensation to directors of the constituent companies was set at three years gross fees for loss of office. [3]

The company was able to standardise electricity supplies (240 V, 50 Hz AC) in the combined area and reduced costs significantly. However, the company was unable to attract further companies to the merger. [5]

The war years (1939–45) were difficult for the company. The sale of electricity fell by 30 per cent; the number of consumers fell by 39 per cent and the electrical load by 37.5 per cent. Tariffs had to be increased in 1940 and 1943. [6] The amount of war damage was estimated to be £600,000, with bulk supply sub-stations damaged on 55 occasions and 139 transformer chambers and 1,424 cables were damaged. Recovery began in 1944 with increases in both sales and the number of consumers. [6]

In 1948 the London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited and Central London Electricity Limited head office was at 60 St. Martins Lane. There were showrooms at: 143/7 Regent Street; 31 Belgrave Road; 254 Earl's Court Road; 147 Sloane Street; and 12 Victoria Street. [7]

The London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited and Central London Electricity Limited were abolished on 31 March 1948 under the terms of the Electricity Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. 6. c. 54) [8] which nationalised the British electricity supply industry. The company's high voltage bulk electricity transmission systems were vested in the British Electricity Authority. [9] The local distribution systems and the electricity sales functions were vested in the London Electricity Board (LEB).

Key people

Chairmen of London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited were: [6]

Electricity supply statistics

The electricity supply statistics for the six constituent companies in 1936, the final year of independent operation, were as follows. [4]

CompanyElectricity sold, MWhMaximum load, MWConnection, MWNo. of consumers
Brompton and Kensington21,4339.3051.05614,722
Charing Cross116,45448.988119.73111,614
Chelsea37,72910.35055.13111,462
Kensington and Knightsbridge40,10014.32064.2587,903
St James and Pall Mall56,11622.11155.6656,045
Westminster124,24947.766200.45028,607

Operating data for the London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited and Central London Electricity Limited was as shown. [2] [6]

YearElectricity sold, MWhConnections, MWNo. of Consumers
1934314,000450
1935350,000489
1936386,000
1937419,000592
1938432,00086,000
1939–42No accounts published during the war
1943303,00053,000
1944348,00076,684
1945382,25083,800
1946450,00090,600
1947433,000

Finances

The combined share capital of the constituent companies in 1935 was £6,892,194. [2] The London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited was able to carry out the amalgamation for £7,300. [3]

The electricity tariffs and operational revenue was as follows. [3] [6]

YearTariff, d./kWhRevenue, £
19341.8042,460,000
19351.6822,500,000
19361.6242,658,600
19370.52,782,600
19381.451
1944+487,000
1945+364,000
1946+394,000
1947–221,000

See also

Related Research Articles

The British Electricity Authority (BEA) was established as the central British electricity authority in 1948 under the nationalisation of Great Britain's electricity supply industry enacted by the Electricity Act 1947. The BEA was responsible for the generation, transmission and sale of electricity to area electricity boards, and the development and maintenance of an efficient, coordinated and economical system of electricity supply.

The Electricity Commissioners were a department of the United Kingdom government's Ministry of Transport, which regulated the electricity supply industry from 1920 until nationalisation in 1948. It was responsible for securing reorganisation on a regional basis and considered schemes for centralisation in a small number of large generating stations owned by joint electricity authorities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electricity Act 1947</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Electricity Act 1947 was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which nationalised, or bought into state control, the electricity supply industry in Great Britain. It established a central authority called the British Electricity Authority (BEA) to own and operate all public electricity generation and transmission facilities and created 14 area electricity boards with a duty to acquire bulk supplies of electricity from the central authority and to distribute and sell electricity economically and efficiently to industrial, commercial and domestic consumers. It vested 505 separate local authority and company owned electricity undertakings in the BEA with effect from 1 April 1948. The Electricity Act 1947 is one of a number of acts promulgated by the post-war Labour government to nationalise elements of the UK’s industrial infrastructure; other acts include the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946; Transport Act 1947 ; Gas Act 1948; and Iron and Steel Act 1949.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northampton Power Station</span> Former electricity generating station

Northampton 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">London Power Company</span>

The London Power Company was an electricity generating and bulk supply company in London, England, formed in 1925 by the merger of ten small electricity companies. In 1948 Britain's electricity supply industry was nationalised under the Electricity Act 1947 and the company was absorbed into the British Electricity Authority.

The City of London Electric Lighting Company Limited (CLELCo) was a British electricity undertaking. It was formed in July 1891 to generate and supply electricity to the City of London and part of north Southwark. It owned and operated Bankside power station on the south bank of the river Thames. The company provided and stimulated demand for electricity, increased its generating capacity, and competed and co-operated with other electricity undertakings in London. The company was dissolved on 1 April 1948 when the British electricity industry was nationalised.

The Charing Cross and Strand Electricity Supply Corporation Limited was a British electricity undertaking. It was incorporated as a public company in 1889 to generate and supply electricity to parts of the City of Westminster, Holborn and later the City of London. From 1925 it worked jointly with other companies as part of the London Power Company. The company was abolished on 31 March 1948 when the British electricity industry was nationalised, and its assets were transferred to the British Electricity Authority and the London Electricity Board. The Charing Cross Corporation's Bow power station continued in operation until 1969.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electricity (Supply) Act 1926</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Electricity (Supply) Act 1926 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which amended the law on the supply of electricity. Its long title is: ‘An Act to amend the law with respect to the supply of electricity’. This Act was construed as one with the Electricity (Supply) Acts 1882 to 1922, and was cited as the Electricity (Supply) Acts 1882 to 1926. It established a statutory body, the Central Electricity Board (CEB), ‘with the duty of supplying electricity to authorised undertakers’ and to ‘appoint consultative technical committees’. It provided for the Electricity Commissioners to prepare and transmit to the CEB ‘electricity schemes’ for relevant areas, and which identified the most efficient ‘selected’ generating stations which were to be used to generate electricity for the Board. The Act provided for ‘main transmission line’ interconnections between selected stations and undertakings; and to standardise the frequency of generation; and other purposes. The provisions of the Act enabled the construction of the National Grid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">County of London Electric Supply Company</span> Former British electricity company

The County of London Electric Supply Company Limited (C.L.E.S.Co) was a British electricity undertaking. It was incorporated as a public company in 1891 to generate and supply electricity to parts of south west London and two parishes adjacent to the City of London. It owned and operated power stations at Wandsworth and City Road. From 1925 it cooperated with three other London companies, with the intention of centralising electricity generation in the new, high thermal efficiency, power station at Barking. The company was abolished in March 1948 upon the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry.

The South Metropolitan Electric Light and Power Company Limited was a British electricity undertaking. It was established in 1904 upon the amalgamation of two south London companies which had supplied electricity in south east London since 1893. It owned and operated a power station at Blackwell Point and one at Penge. From 1925 it formed an association with three other London companies, with the intention of centralising electricity generation in the new, high thermal efficiency, power station at Barking. The South Metropolitan Company was abolished in March 1948 upon the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry.

The South London Electric Supply Corporation Limited was a British electricity undertaking. It was established in 1896 to supply electricity to the parish/borough of Lambeth in south London. The Corporation owned and operated a power station at Loughborough Junction. From 1925 it formed an association with three other London companies to centralise electricity generation in the new, high thermal efficiency, power station at Barking. The South London Electric Corporation was abolished in March 1948 upon the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry.

Lymington power station supplied electricity to the town of Lymington, Hampshire and the surrounding area from 1899 to 1959. The electricity generating station was owned and operated by a succession of electricity companies prior to nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. The station was initially coal-fired but later oil engines were installed. Lymington power station was closed on 31 March 1959.

The Wessex Electricity Company was an electricity generating and supply organisation that operated in south and south-west England from its establishment in 1927 until it was dissolved as a consequence of the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948.

The Edmundsons Electricity Corporation Limited was an electricity holding company that controlled and owned over 60 electricity undertakings throughout England and Wales. It was established in 1897 and was dissolved, despite its objections, as a consequence of the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948.

The Urban Electric Supply Company Limited (UESCo) was a British electricity industry holding company that operated from 1898 until the nationalisation of the electricity supply industry in 1948. It controlled directly, or indirectly through its subsidiaries, electricity undertakings throughout Britain.

Newbury power station supplied electricity to the town of Newbury, Berkshire and the surrounding area from 1905 to 1970. It was owned and operated by a succession of public and private organisations. It comprised, at various times, hydro-electric, gas engine and diesel engine powered plant with a maximum output capacity of 2.57 MW.

The Shropshire, Worcestershire and Staffordshire Electric Power Company was an electricity generating and supply organisation that operated in the West Midlands and South Wales. It was established in 1903 and was dissolved as a consequence of the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948.

Woking power station supplied electricity to the Borough of Woking and the surrounding area from 1890 to 1960. The power station was operated by the Woking Electric Supply Company Limited until the nationalisation of the British electricity industry in 1948. It was redeveloped after the First World War to meet the increased demand for electricity.

The British Power and Light Corporation Limited, also known as the British Power & Light Corporation (1929) Limited was registered in 1929 to acquire a controlling interest in electricity undertakings in North Wales; East Suffolk; South Somerset; Trent Valley and High Peak; West Hampshire; and Ringwood, Hampshire. The corporation operated for 19 years and was abolished upon the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948.

Christy Brothers and Company Limited was a UK electricity engineering company which provided equipment, staffing and management to a number of electricity undertakings, worked as subsidiary companies, in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Suffolk.

References

  1. London County Council (1934). London Statistics vol.37 (1932–3). London: London County Council. pp. 330–1.
  2. 1 2 3 "Electricity Scheme". The Times. 6 February 1935. p. 18.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited". The Times. 20 March 1936. p. 22.
  4. 1 2 London County Council (1939). London Statistics vol.41 (1936–8). London: London County Council. p. 386.
  5. Hannah, Leslie (1979). Electricity before Nationalisation. London: Macmillan. p. 247. ISBN   0333220862.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 The Times, ‘London Associated Electricity Undertakings Limited’ 24 March 1937 p. 26; 23 March 1938 p. 21; 22 March 1939 p. 22; 21 March 1940 p. 14; 14 April 1945 p. 8; 4 April 1946 p. 8; 20 June 1947 p. 9; 5 April 1948 p. 7.
  7. Horne. "London Area Power Supply" (PDF). metadyne. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  8. "Electricity Act 1947". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  9. Electricity Council (1987). Electricity supply in the United Kingdom: a Chronology. London: Electricity Council. pp. 60–61. ISBN   085188105X.