Stepney Power Station facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Stepney Power Station |
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|---|---|
| Country | England |
| Location | Tower Hamlets, London |
| Coordinates | 51°30′34″N 0°02′04″W / 51.509574°N 0.034500°W |
| Status | Decommissioned and demolished |
| Commission date | 1907 |
| Decommission date | 1972 |
| Operator(s) | Stepney Borough Council (1907–1948) British Electricity Authority (1948–1955) Central Electricity Authority (1955–1957) Central Electricity Generating Board (1958–1972) |
| grid reference TQ365808 | |
Stepney Power Station, also sometimes called Limehouse Power Station, was a power plant that used coal to make electricity. It was located next to the River Thames in Limehouse, London. This station helped power homes and businesses in the area for many years.
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How Stepney Power Station Started
The local government, known as the Stepney Borough Council, started building the power station in 1907. It was built at a place called Blyth Wharf. In 1923, a special dock called a coaling jetty was added. This jetty was used to bring coal to the power station by boat.
The power station supplied electricity to the areas of Stepney and Bethnal Green. As more people needed electricity, the station grew and added new machines to make more power.
Growing Power Production
Over the years, Stepney Power Station became much more powerful. The amount of electricity it could make, called its generating capacity, increased a lot.
Here's how much electricity the station could make and sell over time:
| Year | Generating capacity (MW) | Maximum power used (MW) | Electricity made (GWh) | Electricity sold (GWh) |
| 1903/04 | 1.72 | 1.266 | 2.745 | 2.53 |
| 1912/13 | 8.00 | 6.046 | 17.783 | 14.580 |
| 1918/19 | 16.50 | 9.720 | 28.812 | 25.383 |
| 1919/20 | 16.00 | 10.24 | 30.836 | 28.503 |
| 1923/24 | 32.00 | 17.501 | 50.053 | 42.140 |
| 1936/37 | 70.00 | 41.904 | 95.304 | 98.686 |
| 1946 | 61.48 | 140.157 | 128.92 |
In 1923, the station had several large machines called turbo alternators that helped make electricity. These machines could produce a total of 23,500 kilowatts (kW) of power. The station also made a good amount of money, with over £129,000 left after paying its costs.
Dealing with Pollution
At first, the power station had several chimneys. But these caused pollution. To fix this, a single, very tall brick chimney was built in 1937. This new chimney was so tall it became a landmark in the area.
In 1956, new technology was added to help grind the coal into a fine powder before it was burned. This machine, called a Brown-Riley coal pulveriser, helped the station work better. At this time, the station had several large generators, including one that could produce 34 megawatts (MW) of power.
Final Years of Operation
In its last ten years, Stepney Power Station mainly used one large generator that produced 34 MW of electricity. This generator was powered by steam created in large boilers. The station had different types of boilers, including Stirling, Spearling, and Babcock & Wilcox models.
Here is a chart showing the electricity output from Stepney Power Station in its later years: Stepney annual electricity output (GWh)<graph>{ "version": 2, "width": 500, "height": 200, "data": [ { "name": "table", "values": [ { "x": 1964, "y": 89 }, { "x": 1965, "y": 60 }, { "x": 1966, "y": 89 }, { "x": 1967, "y": 70 }, { "x": 1968, "y": 63 }, { "x": 1969, "y": 37 }, { "x": 1970, "y": 67 }, { "x": 1971, "y": 78 }, { "x": 1972, "y": 72 }, { "x": 1961, "y": 51 }, { "x": 1954, "y": 116 }, { "x": 1955, "y": 126 }, { "x": 1956, "y": 92 }, { "x": 1957, "y": 65 }, { "x": 1958, "y": 50 }, { "x": 1962, "y": 94 }, { "x": 1963, "y": 105 } ] } ], "scales": [ { "name": "x", "type": "ordinal", "range": "width", "zero": false, "domain": { "data": "table", "field": "x" } }, { "name": "y", "type": "linear", "range": "height", "nice": true, "domain": { "data": "table", "field": "y" } } ], "axes": [ { "type": "x", "scale": "x" }, { "type": "y", "scale": "y" } ], "marks": [ { "type": "rect", "from": { "data": "table" }, "properties": { "enter": { "x": { "scale": "x", "field": "x" }, "y": { "scale": "y", "field": "y" }, "y2": { "scale": "y", "value": 0 }, "fill": { "value": "steelblue" }, "width": { "scale": "x", "band": "true", "offset": -1 } } } } ] }</graph> The power station continued to make electricity until 1972. After that, it was taken down. Only the coaling jetty, where the coal boats used to dock, remains in the river today.
