Ferrybridge A Power Station
Ferrybridge A Power Station (1917–1976)
1917 Land at Ferrybridge was purchased by the West Yorkshire Power Co
1918 March. Plans for a power station were prepared and submitted to the Board of Trade. Because of a system change the following year with the Electricity (Supply) Act 1919, the plans were put on hold. The plans were resubmitted to the Electricity Commissioners in January 1920. The plans were finally granted permission in November 1921, but delayed by a supply area reshuffle. A 135 acres site was chosen with good access to coal, water, and good transport links including water transport.
1926 Construction of Ferrybridge power station began for Yorkshire Electric Power Co
The initial station covered 32 acres of the site. The main buildings contained the boilers, turbines, and offices and workshops, and a smaller building housed the electrical switchgear. Transport facilities included sidings connected to the LNER with equipment for handling wagons up to 20t, and a river wharf for transport by barge. Wagon unloading was by a side tipper, into an automated weigher and then conveyors, and barge unloading was by a crane into the weighing machine. The cooling water intakes were 550 ft (170 m) upstream of the wharves, initially with two filtered intakes with a minimum capacity (low water) of 3,000,000 imp gal (14,000 m3) of water per hour.
The power generating equipment included eight 75,000 lb (34,000 kg) per hour water boiling capacity water tube boilers arranged in pairs, sharing air draught and chimneys (166 ft (51 m) height). The boilers, by the Stirling Boiler Co, were designed to produce superheated steam at 315 psi (21.4 atm) at 700 °F (371 °C) The turbine/generator section had two 3,000 rpm three stage reaction turbines driving alternators rated at 19 MW continuous. The alternators produced 50 Hz 3 phase AC at 11 kV, which was stepped up to 33 kV by two sets of three single phase transformers rated at 25 MW per set.
The turbine-generators were made by Brown Boveri and Co.
W. H. Allen, Sons and Co supplied the condensing plant.
1927 The station began operating.
1929 The power station was selected for the Mid-East England Electricity Scheme[1]
1948 The station passed into the ownership of the British Electricity Authority on the nationalisation of the UK's power industry, with the Electricity Act 1947.
1954 Passed to the Central Electricity Authority in 1954.
1976 October 25th. The station closed and at that time it had a generating capacity of 125 MW.
Ferrybridge A's boiler room and turbine hall still stand today; its single large concrete chimney has been demolished. The buildings are now used as offices and workshops, by the RWE npower Technical Support Group, who are responsible for the maintenance and repairs of power station plant from around the country.
See also
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑ The Times Jan. 19, 1929