Barking Power Station facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Barking Power Station |
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Barking Reach Power Station
Viewed from the south in October 2007 |
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| Country | England |
| Location | Greater London |
| Coordinates | 51°31′16″N 0°08′49″E / 51.5210°N 0.1470°E |
| Status | Decommissioned and demolished |
| Construction began | 'A' 1925-28; 'B' 1931-39; 'C' 1952-54; Barking Reach 1992-95 |
| Commission date | 'A' 1925; 'B' 1933; 'C' 1954; Barking Reach 1995 |
| Decommission date | 'A' 1969; 'B' 1976; 'C' 1981; Barking Reach 2018 |
| Owner(s) | As operator |
| Operator(s) | Barking Town Urban District Council (1897-1927) County of London Electric Supply Company (1925-1948) British Electricity Authority (1948-1955) Central Electricity Authority (1955-1957) Central Electricity Generating Board (1957-1981) Thames Power Services (1995-present) |
| grid reference TQ4893882469 | |
Barking Power Station isn't just one building! It's the name for several power stations that have been built in London Borough of Barking and Dagenham over many years. The first stations, called A, B, and C, used coal to make electricity. They were located by the River Thames at a place called Creekmouth. These older stations were closed down by 1981 and later taken apart.
A newer power station, known as Barking Reach Power Station, was built nearby in the 1990s. This one used natural gas to create power. Today, the land where the old power stations stood is being turned into a new area called Barking Riverside.
Contents
History of Barking Power Stations
Barking A Power Station
Before the big Barking A Power Station was built, the local council in Barking had a smaller power station that ran from 1897 to 1927.
In 1920, a company wanted to build a much larger power station at Creekmouth. This became Barking A Station. It had eight large machines called turbo-generators and 22 boilers. Boilers heat water to make steam, which then spins the generators to make electricity. Some boilers burned coal, and later, some were changed to burn oil.
King George V officially opened Barking Power Station on May 19, 1925. It started making electricity for homes and businesses on January 1, 1926. When it was finished, Barking A was the largest power station in Britain built all at once! It closed down in 1969.
The location was chosen carefully. It was easy to bring coal by boat on the Thames or by train. There was also plenty of water for cooling and lots of space to build more stations later. A special tunnel was even built under the river to send electricity to the south side.
Barking B Power Station
The original Barking A station was made even bigger with the addition of the B station. This new part started working fully in 1939. Barking B had four large turbo-generators, each able to produce 75 megawatts of power. It also had 16 boilers that burned coal.
In 1948, the power station became part of a national electricity company in Britain. The B station kept running until March 15, 1976.
Barking C Power Station
A third power station, called Barking C, was built at Creekmouth and finished in 1954. This station had three more large turbo-generators, each producing 75 megawatts. It used six boilers, some burning coal and later converted to oil around 1960.
The C station was the last of the original three to close. It stopped operating on October 26, 1981. After it closed, all three stations (A, B, and C) were taken down.
Barking Reach Power Station
The most recent power station, known as Barking Reach, was built in a different spot near Dagenham Dock. Its construction started in 1992 and finished in 1995. This was a big deal because it was the first major power station built in London for many years!
Barking Reach was a very powerful station, able to make 1000 megawatts of electricity. That's about 2% of all the electricity needed in England and Wales during busy times. It used a modern method called Combined Cycle Gas Turbine technology, which means it used natural gas as its main fuel.
In 2014, the people who ran the station announced they planned to close it. The process of taking it apart began in 2018, and its tall chimneys were even brought down using explosives.
In December 2018, the land where Barking Reach Power Station stood was bought by the City of London. They are planning to use this large 42-acre site to bring together three big wholesale food markets: Billingsgate Fish Market, Smithfield Meat Market, and New Spitalfields Market. In March 2021, the local council gave permission for these plans to go ahead.
