Newbury power station

Newbury power station
Country	England
Location	Newbury Berkshire
Coordinates	51°24′07″N 01°18′53″W
Status	Decommissioned and demolished
Commission date	1905
Decommission date	1970
Owners	Urban Electric Supply Company Limited (1901–1937) Wessex Electricity Company (1937–1948) British Electricity Authority (1948–1955) Central Electricity Authority (1955–1957) Central Electricity Generating Board (1958–1970)
Operator	As owner
Thermal power station
Primary fuel	Diesel fuel
Turbine technology	Diesel engines
Power generation
Units operational	2 x 1050 kW, 2 x 180 kW, 1 x 110 kW
Nameplate capacity	2.57 MW
Annual net output	1762 MWh (1956)

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.

History

The Board of Trade granted Newbury Corporation a Provisional Order in 1892 to generate and supply electricity to Newbury under the Electric Lighting Acts.[1] This was confirmed by Parliament through the Electric Lighting Orders Confirmation (No. 3) Act 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c. xxxviii).[2] However, the town council did not develop the electricity undertaking.

In 1901 the Urban Electric Supply Company Limited obtained a Provisional Order to supply electricity to Newbury. The Urban Electric Supply Company was founded in 1898 to obtain Parliamentary powers to operate smaller electric light and tramway undertakings.[3] The company's Provisional Order for Newbury was confirmed by the Electric Lighting Orders Confirmation (No. 7) Act 1901 (1 Edw. 7. c. clxxiv).[4]

The Urban Electric Supply Company built the power station at Greenham Mill (51° 24’ 07”N, 1° 18’ 53”W)[5] over the River Kennet and which opened in January 1905. It used water wheels to generate electricity; the maximum head of water over Greenham weir was 6 feet 11 inches (2.11 metres).[6] In addition to the hydro-electric plant, gas-fired generators were installed at the power station.[7]

Electricity was sold to customers in 1923 at 9.57 d./kWh for lighting and domestic use, and 3.26 d./kWh for power uses. The financial operating summary for the undertaking was as follows:[7]

Newbury electricity undertaking financial summary 1922–23

Year	1922	1923
Expenditure charged to capital account	£72,204	£71,992
Revenue from sale of current	£11,106	£12,293
Total revenue from working	£11,850	£13,040
Total working costs	£6,114	£6,250
Surplus of revenue over expenses	£5,488	£6,556
Gross  surplus	£5,564	£6,664

In 1937 the Wessex Electricity Company, assumed ownership of several small municipal and company electricity undertakings, including Newbury. The Wessex company was founded in 1927 to distribute electricity across south-west England.[8] It aimed to modernise, rationalise and integrate the distribution networks of its constituent companies. Its share capital was wholly owned by Edmondson's Electricity Corporation Limited.

The water wheels and gas engines were decommissioned and replaced with diesel engine sets.[9]

The British electricity supply industry was nationalised in 1948 under the provisions of the Electricity Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. 6 c. 54).[10] The Newbury electricity undertaking was abolished, ownership of Newbury power station was vested in the British Electricity Authority, and subsequently the Central Electricity Authority and the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB).[11] At the same time the electricity distribution and sales responsibilities of the Newbury electricity undertaking were transferred to the Southern Electricity Board (SEB).

Newbury power station closed in about 1970.[12]

Plant equipment

Plant in 1923

The generating plant at Newbury in 1923 comprised:[7]

• 1 × 52 kW water wheel, and direct current generator
• 1 × 60 kW water wheel, DC generator
• 2 × 80 kW gas engines, DC generator
• 2 × 200 kW gas engines, DC generator

This gave a total output of 672 kW.

Electricity was provided to customers at 480 and 240 Volts direct current.[7]

Plant in 1955

The generating plant at Newbury in 1955 comprised:[9]

• 1 × 110 kW diesel engine set DC 500 volts
• 2 × 180 kW diesel engine set DC 500 volts
• 1 × 1050 kW Ruston-Peebles diesel engine set 11 kV (installed December 1954)
• 1 × 1050 kW Ruston-Peebles diesel engine set 11 kV (installed January 1955)

The total generating capacity was 2.57 MW.[9]

Operations

Operations 1921-23

Electricity supply data for 1921-23 was:[7]

Newbury power station electricity supply data 1921–23

Electricity Use	Units	Year
		1921	1922	1923
Lighting and domestic	MWh	183	165	186
Public lighting	MWh	0	0	0
Power	MWh	409	363	360
Bulk supply	MWh	0	0	0
Total use	MWh	592	528	546

Electricity Loads on the system were:[7]

Year		1921	1922	1923
Maximum load	kW	300	298	348
Total connections	kW	1593	1664	1746
Load factor	Per cent	25.9	25.0	22.2

Operations 1946-67

The operating data for Newbury power station was:[9][13][14]

Newbury power station operating data, 1946–67

Year	Running hours or load factor (per cent)	Max output capacity kW	Electricity supplied MWh	Thermal efficiency per cent
1946	–	–	187	–
1954	725	520	227	60.2
1955	467	2620	760	62.1
1956	954	2620	1762	70.5
1957	312	2570	547	68.2
1958	564	2570	1055	72.8
1961	2.6%	3000	584	31.99
1962	3.1%	3000	695	32.17
1963	5.10%	2000	1339	32.40
1967	14.7%	3880	4940	31.74

See also

• Timeline of the UK electricity supply industry
• List of power stations in England

References

1. Garcke, Emile (1898). Manual of Electrical Undertakings 1898-99 vol. 3. London: P. S. King and Son. p. 254.
2. "Local Acts 1892". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
3. "Urban Electric Supply". The Times. 31 July 1905.
4. "Local Acts 1901". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 7 December 2020.
5. Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, Berkshire XLIII.1 (Greenham; Newbury), revised 1932, published 1934
6. Nicholson (2014). Waterways Guide River Thames and the Southern Waterways. Glasgow: Nicholson. p. 99. ISBN 9780007493814.
7. Electricity Commissioners (1925). Electricity Supply – 1920–23. London: HMSO. pp. 212–215, 496–501.
8. "Wessex Electricity Company". The Times. 9 June 1939. p. 19.
9. Garrett, Frederick (1959). Garcke's Manual of Electricity Supply vol. 56. London: Electrical Press. pp. A-79 A-143.
10. "Electricity Act 1947". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 December 2020.
11. Electricity Council (1987). Electricity supply in the United Kingdom: a Chronology. London: Electricity Council. pp. 60, 69, 73. ISBN 085188105X.
12. The station is listed in the CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1967 but not in the 1972 edition
13. Electricity Commissioners (1947). Generation of Electricity in Great Britain year ended 31 December 1946. London: HMSO. p. 15.
14. CEGB Annual Report 1961-63, CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1967, 1972