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Southport power station

Southport power station supplied electricity to the town of Southport and the surrounding area from 1894 to the late 1960s. The power station was built by the Southport Corporation which operated it up to the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. Birkdale power station was operated by the Birkdale District Electric Supply Company Limited and originally supplied Birkdale Urban District until the district was incorporated into the Borough of Southport in 1911.

Southport power station
Map
CountryEngland
LocationSouthport
Coordinates53°38′41″N 02°57′49″W / 53.64472°N 2.96361°W / 53.64472; -2.96361
StatusDecommissioned
Construction began1891
Commission date1894
Decommission date1970
OwnersSouthport Corporation
(1891–1948)
British Electricity Authority
(1948–1955)
Central Electricity Authority
(1955–1957)
Central Electricity Generating Board
(1958–1970)
OperatorAs owner
Thermal power station
Primary fuelCoal
Secondary fuelFuel oil
Turbine technologySteam turbines
Cooling towers3
Cooling sourcecirculating water
Power generation
Units operational1 x 7.7 MW, 2 x 3.85 MW, 1 x 1.85 MW
Make and modelBrush-Ljungstrom
Nameplate capacity17.25 MW
Annual net output22,827 MWh (1946)
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History

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Southport Corporation applied in 1891 for a Provisional Order under the Electric Lighting Acts  to generate and supply electricity to the town of Southport. An Order was granted by the Board of Trade and was confirmed by Parliament through the Electric Lighting Orders Confirmation (No. 2) Act 1891 (54 & 55 Vict. c. l).[1] A power station was built in Russell Road, Southport (53°38’41”N, 2°57’49”W)[2] and was commissioned in 1894. The Corporation charged 7d./kWh and had 338 customers in 1897.[3]

Provisional Orders were granted in 1883 and 1898 to Birkdale District Electric Supply Company Limited to supply electricity to Birkdale. The company built a power station Grantham Road, Birkdale.[4] Birkdale Urban District was incorporated into the borough of Southport in 1911, after which Birkdale power station was operated by Southport Corporation.[5]

Southport Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Southport between 1900 and 1934, this was supplied with electric current by the Southport and Birkdale power stations.[6]

The generating station at Southport was extended with new plant as demand for electricity grew.

There was a legal case in 1925–26 concerning certain clauses in agreements between the Southport Corporation and the Birkdale Electric Company regarding electricity supplies.[5]

The Central Electricity Board built the first stages of the National Grid between 1927 and 1933.[7] Southport power station was connected to an electricity grid ring which included the power stations at Ribble (Lancaster), Lister Drive (Liverpool), Warrington and Westwood (Wigan); this was one of three electricity rings in the North West. The others were Bolton, Padiham, Rawtenstall and Kearsley power stations ring; and the third was Manchester, Oldham, Tame Valley and Stockport ring.[8]

The British electricity supply industry was nationalised in 1948 under the provisions of the Electricity Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. 6 c. 54).[9] The Southport electricity undertaking was abolished, ownership of Southport and Birkdale power stations were vested in the British Electricity Authority, and subsequently the Central Electricity Authority and the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB).[7] At the same time the electricity distribution and sales responsibilities of the Southport electricity undertaking were transferred to the North Western Electricity Board (NORWEB).

Following nationalisation Southport power station became part of the Southport electricity supply district.[3]

Southport power station was closed in the late 1960s.[10]

Equipment specification

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The plant in the original 1894 Southport power station was rated at 675 kW and comprised horizontal engines coupled by ropes and directly to Edison-Hopkinson and Ferranti dynamos.[3]

Plant in 1923

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By 1923 the plant at Southport comprised boilers delivering 57,000 lb/h (7.2 kg/s) of steam to:[11]

The following electricity supplies were available to consumers:

  • 380 & 190 Volts, 3-phase, 50 Hz AC
  • 220 & 110 Volts, 1-phase, 50 Hz AC
  • 500 Volts DC

In 1923 the plant at Birkdale comprised boilers delivering 20,600 lb/h (26.0 kg/s) of steam to:[11]

  • 1 × 350 kW reciprocating engine driving direct current (DC) generator
  • 3 × 110 kW reciprocating engines driving direct current (DC) generators

There was also a 90 kW oil fuelled engine

The following electricity supplies were available to consumers:

  • 550 Volts DC traction
  • 460  & 230 Volt DC

Plant in 1954

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By 1954 the plant at Southport comprised:[4]

  • Boilers:
    • 2 × Vickers-Spearing 43,000 lb/h (5.4 kg/s) boilers
    • 1 × Vickers-Spearing 48,000 lb/h (6.05 kg/s) boiler
    • 1 × Yarrow 85,000 lb/h (10.71 kg/s) oil-fired boiler (commissioned October 1954)

Total evaporative capacity 219,000 lb/h (2706 kg/s), steam conditions were 260 psi and 720 °F (17.9 bar and 382 °C), steam was supplied to:

  • Generators:
    • 1 × 7.7 MW Brush Ljungstrom turbo-alternator
    • 2 × 3.85 MW Brush Ljungstrom turbo-alternators
    • 1 × 1.85 MW Brush Ljungstrom turbo-alternator

The total installed capacity was 17.25 MW, 6.6 kV.[4]

Condenser water was cooled by 2 × 0.15 million gallons per hour (682 m3/h) Peter Brotherhood cooling towers and 1 × 0.3 million gallons per hour (1364 m3/h ) induced draft cooling tower (commissioned December 1954)[4] Water was supplied from land drainage works.

In 1954 the plant at Birkdale comprised a single 500 kW Fullagar diesel-English Electric set, generating 480 V DC.[4]

Operations

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In 1897 Southport power station sold 376,490 kWh of electricity, the maximum load was 404 kW.[3]

Operating data 1921–23

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The electricity supply data for the period 1921–23 was:[11]

Southport power station supply data 1921–23
Electricity Use Units Year
1921 1922 1923
Lighting and domestic MWh 1,513 1,672 2,188
Public lighting MWh 88 82 139
Traction MWh 828 757 882
Power MWh 1,439 1,552 1,686
Bulk supply MWh 0 0 0
Total use MWh 3,868 4,065 4,875

Electricity Loads on the system were:

Year 1921 1922 1923
Maximum load kW 2,094 2,550 2,815
Total connections kW 11,138 12,398 13,985
Load factor Per cent 25.1 25.7 26.6

Revenue from the sale of current (in 1923) was £73,491; the surplus of revenue over expenses was £46,345.[11]

The electricity supply data for Birkdale in the period 1921–23 was:[11]

Birkdale power station supply data 1921–23
Electricity Use Units Year
1921 1922 1923
Lighting and domestic MWh 427 366 404
Public lighting MWh 23 16 26
Traction MWh 497 291 0
Power MWh 40 176 176
Bulk supply MWh 0 0 0
Total use MWh 997 850 640

Electricity Loads on the system were:

Year 1921 1922 1923
Maximum load kW 544 478 522
Total connections kW 2,349 2,126 2,485
Load factor Per cent 26.5 26.4 19.8

Revenue from the sale of current (in 1923) was £16,370; the surplus of revenue over expenses was £9,228.[11]

Operating data 1946

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In 1946 Southport power station supplied 22,877 MWh of electricity; the maximum output load was 11,124 kW. The load factor was 24.7%, and the thermal efficiency was 15.20%.[12]

Birkdale power station was both steam powered and had oil engines, it sent out 242 MWh in 1946 and the maximum load was 1,052 MW.[12]

Operating data 1954–67

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Operating data for the period 1954–67 was:[4][13]

Southport power station operating data, 1954–67
Year Running hours or load factor (per cent) Max output capacity  MW Electricity supplied MWh Thermal efficiency per cent
1954 2218 11 13,369 14.57
1955 2019 16 14,122 15.29
1956 1548 16 10,544 15.28
1957 1208 16 6,463 14.19
1958 1914 16 12,139 14.83
1961 0.4 % 16 629 6.51
1962 1.8 % 16 2605 11.94
1963 5.5 % 16 7706 12.98
1967 7.9 % 15 10430 12.54

The total output, in MWh, from Southport and Birkdale power stations is as shown.

Southport Electricity District

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Following nationalisation in 1948 Southport power station became part of the Southport electricity supply district, covering 26 square miles (67.3 km2) with a population of 92,000 in 1958. The number of consumers and electricity sold in the Southport district was:[4]

Year 1957 1958
Number of consumers 31,395 31,877
Electricity sold MWh 93,905 99,823

In 1958 the number of units sold to categories of consumers was:[4]

Type of consumer No. of consumers Electricity sold MWh
Domestic 27,703 59,050
Shops and Offices 3,548 24,785
Factories 480 14,248
Farms 144 367
Traction 0 0
Public lighting 2 1,373
Total 31,877 99,823

The maximum demand on the system was 35,900 kW, the load factor was 31.7%.[4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Local Acts 1891". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  2. ^ Ordnance Survey 25 inch England and Wales, Lancashire LXXV.11 (North Meols; Scarisbrick; Southport), revised 1908 to 1909, published 1911
  3. ^ a b c d Garcke, Emile (1898). Manual of Electrical Undertakings 1898-99 vol. 3. London: P. S. King and Son. pp. 315–17.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Garrett, Frederick (1959). Garcke's Manual of Electricity Supply vol. 56. London: Electrical Press. pp. A-34, A-94–95 A-134 B-233.
  5. ^ a b "House of Lords Electricity: agreement for limitation of charges". The Times. 13 February 1956. p. 4.
  6. ^ Klapper, Charles F. (1962). The Golden Age of Tramways. Routledge and Kegan Paul.
  7. ^ a b Electricity Council (1987). Electricity supply in the United Kingdom: a Chronology. London: Electricity Council. pp. 45–46 60–61. ISBN 085188105X.
  8. ^ Hannah, Leslie (1979). Electricity before Nationalisation. London: Macmillan. p. 121. ISBN 0333220862.
  9. ^ "Electricity Act 1947". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
  10. ^ The power station is mentioned in the CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1967 but not in the 1972 edition
  11. ^ a b c d e f Electricity Commissioners (1925). Electricity Supply – 1920–23. London: HMSO. pp. 86–89, 314–19.
  12. ^ a b Electricity Commissioners (1947). Generation of Electricity in Great Britain year ended 31 December 1946. London: HMSO. p. 14.
  13. ^ CEGB Annual Report 1961–63, CEGB Statistical Yearbook 1967
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