Dunston Power Station
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:''Sometimes confused with the nearby Stella power stations.'' Dunston Power Station refers to a pair of adjacent
coal-fired power stations A coal-fired power station or coal power plant is a thermal power station which burns coal to generate electricity. Worldwide there are about 2,500 coal-fired power stations, on average Nameplate capacity, capable of generating a gigawatts, ...
in the North East of England, now demolished. They were built on the south bank of the
River Tyne The River Tyne is a river in North East England. Its length (excluding tributaries) is . It is formed by the North Tyne and the South Tyne, which converge at Warden, Northumberland, Warden near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The ...
, in the western outskirts of Dunston in
Gateshead Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...
. The two stations were built on a site which is now occupied by the MetroCentre. The first power station built on the site was known as Dunston A Power Station, and the second, which gradually replaced it between 1933 and 1950, was known as Dunston B Power Station. The A Station was, in its time, one of the largest in the country, and as well as burning coal had early open cycle gas turbine units. The B Station was the first of a new power station design, and stood as a landmark on the Tyne for over 50 years. From the A Station's opening in 1910 until the B Station's demolition in 1986, they collectively operated from the early days of electricity generation in the United Kingdom, through the industry's
nationalisation Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization contrasts with priv ...
, and until a decade before its
privatisation Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...
. Dunston A had a generating capacity of 48.85
megawatts The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named in honor o ...
(MW) in 1955, and Dunston B had a generating capacity of 300 MW. Electricity from the stations powered an area covering
Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...
,
County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...
,
Cumberland Cumberland ( ) is an area of North West England which was historically a county. The county was bordered by Northumberland to the north-east, County Durham to the east, Westmorland to the south-east, Lancashire to the south, and the Scottish ...
,
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
and as far north as
Galashiels Galashiels (; , ) is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensive history in the textile in ...
in Scotland.


Dunston A Power Station


History

With the expansion of the electric supply industry in the early 1900s, power stations were built to supply homes with electric lighting. Around
Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...
this led to the construction of power stations at
Lemington Lemington is an area and electoral ward in the West End of Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England. History Lemington has a strong industrial history. It is famous for its brick glassworks cone, built in 1787. The River Tyne used to pass ...
, The Close and Carville. Two supply companies built the stations, the
Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company The North Eastern Electric Supply Company (commonly abbreviated to NESCo) was responsible for the supply of electricity to a large amount of North East England, prior to the nationalisation of the British electricity industry with the Electricit ...
(NESCo) to the east of Newcastle, and the Newcastle and District Electric Lighting Company (DisCo) to the west. To meet an increasing demand for electricity, NESCo commissioned Dunston Power Station (later Dunston A Power Station) on the Derwent Haugh, a large
flood plain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high Discharge (hydrolog ...
to the west of
Gateshead Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...
, to balance the supply of the Newcastle area with the Carville station. Construction of the new station began in 1908, the work undertaken by the company of
Sir Robert McAlpine Sir Robert McAlpine Limited is a family-owned building and civil engineering company based in Hemel Hempstead, England. It carries out engineering and construction in the infrastructure, heritage, commercial, arena and stadium, healthcare, educ ...
. They completed the construction in the short time of 20 months, and this was to be their first in a large number of power station constructions, following the decline of the railway industry. In 1910, the station was opened and began generating electricity.


Design and specification

The station was of a similar design to other local power stations at Carville and Lemington, and was a large triple-gabled brick building. However Dunston A was built several years after the other local stations, and so because of advances in power station design, was larger and was able to produce more electricity than the others. The station was originally equipped with two turbo-alternators rated at 7.2 
megawatts The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named in honor o ...
(MW), made by
AEG The initials AEG are used for or may refer to: Common meanings * AEG (German company) ; AEG) was a German producer of electrical equipment. It was established in 1883 by Emil Rathenau as the ''Deutsche Edison-Gesellschaft für angewandte El ...
of Germany, and two turbo alternators rated at 6.25 MW and 13.2 MW, made by
Brown Boveri Brown, Boveri & Cie. (Brown, Boveri & Company; BBC) was a Swiss group of electrical engineering companies. It was founded in Baden bei Zürich, in 1891 by Charles Eugene Lancelot Brown and Walter Boveri who worked at the Maschinenfabrik Oerlik ...
of Switzerland, for a total generating capacity of 33.85 MW. The turbo alternators were supplied with steam from 24 coal burning
Babcock & Wilcox Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises, Inc. is an American energy technology and service provider that is active and has operations in many international markets with its headquarters in Akron, Ohio. Historically, the company is best known for their stea ...
marine water-tube boilers.


Low temperature carbonisation plant

In 1925, NESCo set up separate plant at the power station for the low temperature
carbonisation Carbonization or carbonisation is the conversion of organic matters like plants and dead animal remains into carbon through destructive distillation. Complexity in carbonization Carbonization is a pyrolytic reaction, therefore, is considered ...
treatment of coal, before being burned in boilers and the steam used for electricity generation. The treatment plant was manufactured by Babcock & Wilcox, and set up in a self-contained boiler house which contained four boilers, four
retort In a chemistry laboratory, a retort is a device used for distillation or dry distillation of substances. It consists of a sphere, spherical vessel with a long downward-pointing neck. The liquid to be distilled is placed in the vessel and heat ...
s and pulverising mills. The building was also fitted with gas-stripping and by-product plants. The carbonising plant could handle up to 100 tonnes of coal per day, while its boilers produced 78,000 lb of steam per hour. This plant was extended in 1931.


Gas turbine plant

Between 1947 and November 1955, the station was extended, and a 15 MW Parsons
gas turbine A gas turbine or gas turbine engine is a type of Internal combustion engine#Continuous combustion, continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas gene ...
turbo alternator was installed, bringing the capacity of the station up to 48.85 MW. The gas was supplied by pipe line from the Norwood Coke Works, away in the
Team Valley Team Valley is a trading estate located in Gateshead. It is home to the Retail World retail park, with many large, international companies based in the area's trading estate. In 2017, there were approximately 700 companies on the estate, employin ...
. The electricity output from the A station was as follows.


Dunston B Power Station

As part of a transition from the 40
Hertz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or Cycle per second, cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in ter ...
(Hz) system, used by the Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company, to the 50 Hz system, used by the new UK National Grid, which took place in 1932, a new power station was built to replace the A power station.


Design and specification

The new Dunston B Power Station was designed by consulting engineers
Merz & McLellan Merz and McLellan was a leading British electrical engineering consultancy based in Newcastle. History The firm was founded by Charles Merz and William McLellan in Newcastle upon Tyne in 1902 when McLellan joined Merz's existing firm establis ...
. Its design was different from the design of other power stations at the time because it enclosed the machinery in a
steel frame Steel frame is a building technique with a "skeleton frame" of vertical steel columns and horizontal I-beams, constructed in a rectangular grid to support the floors, roof and walls of a building which are all attached to the frame. The develop ...
clad with glass. This was a departure from the usual power station designs, which normally enclosed the machinery in a concrete or brick wall. Dunston B is thought to be the first power station in the UK and possibly even the world to be built in this way. The station was also the first in the world to use metal clad
switchgear In an electric power system, a switchgear is composed of electrical disconnect switches, fuses or circuit breakers used to control, protect and isolate electrical equipment. Switchgear is used both to de-energize equipment to allow work to ...
at a voltage as high as 66,000 V. Construction of the new power station started in 1930, but the Second World War delayed its full completion until 1951. The station was opened in stages throughout its construction, as generating units were able to be put into production while the other sections were still under construction. Initially 3 x 50,000 kW sets were ordered with the first unit commissioned in January 1933. The new station had a capacity of 300
megawatts The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named in honor o ...
(MW), produced by six 50 MW generating sets. These were made by
C. A. Parsons and Company C. A. Parsons and Company was a British engineering firm which was once one of the largest employers on Tyneside. The company became Reyrolle Parsons in 1968, merged with Clarke Chapman to form Northern Engineering Industries in 1977, and bec ...
and were the largest machines ever constructed under
Charles Algernon Parsons Sir Charles Algernon Parsons (13 June 1854 – 11 February 1931) was an Anglo-Irish mechanical engineer and inventor who designed the modern steam turbine in 1884. His invention revolutionised marine propulsion, and he was also the founder of C ...
' supervision. The station's units were the first application of reheated steam in steam turbines in the world, an improvement which gave them a heat consumption of only 9,280
BTU The British thermal unit (Btu) is a measure of heat, which is a form of energy. It was originally defined as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit. It is also part of the United Stat ...
per
kilowatt hour A kilowatt-hour ( unit symbol: kW⋅h or kW h; commonly written as kWh) is a non-SI unit of energy equal to 3.6 megajoules (MJ) in SI units, which is the energy delivered by one kilowatt of power for one hour. Kilowatt-hours are a commo ...
, the most efficient system in the UK. In 1939 the station was said to be ''"at the head of all the Power Stations in Great Britain as regards thermal efficiency."'' The station remained one of Britain's most efficient systems until the 1950s. The stations' buildings were around tall. Flue gas was discharged through six tall
chimneys A chimney is an architectural ventilation structure made of masonry, clay or metal that isolates hot toxic exhaust gases or smoke produced by a boiler, stove, furnace, incinerator, or fireplace from human living areas. Chimneys are typically ...
, one for each of the station's six generating units. The station was fitted with two
electrostatic precipitator An electrostatic precipitator (ESP) is a filterless device that removes fine particles, such as dust and smoke, from a flowing gas using the force of an induced electrostatic charge minimally impeding the flow of gases through the unit. In c ...
s in 1953, one completed in June that year and the other in September. They were fitted to reduce smoke and pollution from the station.


Operations

The plant's water system was cooled by using the nearby River Tyne, rather than using a
cooling tower A cooling tower is a device that rejects waste heat to the atmosphere through the cooling of a coolant stream, usually a water stream, to a lower temperature. Cooling towers may either use the evaporation of water to remove heat and cool the ...
system. Coal for the station was supplied from various
coal mine Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...
s in the North Durham
coalfield A coalfield is an area of certain uniform characteristics where coal is mined. The criteria for determining the approximate boundary of a coalfield are geographical and cultural, in addition to geological. A coalfield often groups the seams of ...
s, and was brought to the station by train, on what was a freight only line. Since the station's closure, this line has been upgraded for use by passenger trains and is now used as part of the
Newcastle & Carlisle Railway The Newcastle and Carlisle Railway (N&CR) (formally, the ''Newcastle upon Tyne and Carlisle Railway'') was an English railway company formed in 1825 that built a line from Newcastle upon Tyne on Britain's east coast, to Carlisle, on the west co ...
. Once delivered to the station, coal was shunted by CEGB No. 15 "Eustace Forth", which was built by Robert Stephenson & Hawthorns in 1942, and No. 13 "The Barra", which was built by Hawthorn Leslie & Company in 1928. These two engines are now stored at
National Railway Museum Shildon Locomotion, previously known as Locomotion the National Railway Museum at Shildon, is a railway museum in Shildon, County Durham, England. The museum was renamed in 2017 when it became part of the Science Museum Group. Overview The museum was ...
and
Tanfield Railway The Tanfield Railway is a heritage railway in Gateshead and County Durham, England. Running on part of a former horse-drawn colliery wooden waggonway, later rope & horse, lastly rope & loco railway. It operates preserved industrial steam lo ...
respectively. Various ships disposed of the station's ash waste, by carrying the
fly ash Coal combustion products (CCPs), also called coal combustion wastes (CCWs) or coal combustion residuals (CCRs), are byproducts of burning coal. They are categorized in four groups, each based on physical and chemical forms derived from coal combust ...
down the river and dumping it in the
North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...
. These vessels included ''"Bobby Shaftoe"'', ''"Bessie Surtees"'' and ''"Hexhamshire Lass"'', which were also used by the nearby Stella power stations; as well as a number of tugs towing
hopper barge A hopper barge is a type of barge commonly designed to transport commodities like coal, steel, rocks, sand, soil and waste. 'Hopper barge' can also refer to a barge that dumps cargo at sea. These are now commonly called 'split hopper barge', bec ...
s, including ''"Mildred"''. In 1971 the station had an installed capacity of 282.5 MW comprising two 52 MW and four 44 MW generator sets. The boilers had an output capacity of 2,250,000 pounds per hour (283.4 kg/s) of steam at 600 psi (41.4 bar) and 427/454 °C. In 1971 the station delivered 508.83 GWh of electricity. The electricity generating capacity and output of Dunston B power station are shown in the tables. Separate figures are given for the Part I plant (1933–39) and the part II plant (1949–50).


Closure, demolition and present

In its time, Dunston B Power Station ranked consistently in England's leading stations, both in terms of thermal efficiency and cost per unit of electricity. However, the station eventually became outdated, and notification of its partial closure was given in October 1975, with some units being closed the following October. It was then only used as a stand-by station, operating only at peak electrical demand times. Finally, after some units having been in operation for about 40 years, the station ceased to generate electricity on 26 October 1981. At the time of closure, only 98 MW of the station's capacity was in use. The station was demolished in 1986 to make way for the MetroCentre, which became Europe's largest shopping and leisure centre. The land on which the MetroCentre was built was bought for only £100,000, because the site was water-logged and had been used for dumping ash produced by the power station. American
warehouse club A warehouse club (or wholesale club) is a retailing, retail store, usually selling a wide variety of merchandising, merchandise, in which customers may buy large, wholesale quantities of the store's products, which makes these clubs attractive ...
chain
Costco Costco Wholesale Corporation is an American multinational corporation which operates a chain of membership-only big-box warehouse club retail stores. As of 2021, Costco is the third-largest retailer in the world, and as of August 2024, Cos ...
have since built a store on the actual site of the power station. The power station's large indoor sub-station still stands alongside it, as the only trace of the site's former use. Due to the closure of Dunston power station, along with the later closures of the power stations at Stella and Blyth, the northern part of
North East England North East England, commonly referred to simply as the North East within England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of County DurhamNorthumberland, , Northumberland, Tyne and Wear and part of northern North Yorkshire. ...
has become heavily dependent upon the National Grid for electrical supply. However, in the south of the region there are still two large power stations at
Hartlepool Hartlepool ( ) is a seaside resort, seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is governed by a unitary authority borough Borough of Hartlepool, named after the town. The borough is part of the devolved Tees Valley area with an estimat ...
and
Teesside Teesside () is an urban area around the River Tees in North East England. Straddling the border between County Durham and North Yorkshire, it spans the boroughs of Borough of Middlesbrough, Middlesbrough, Borough of Stockton-on-Tees, Stockton ...
, meaning that the south of the region does not depend upon the National Grid for electrical supply as much as the north of the region.


Visual and cultural impact

The power station's six
chimneys A chimney is an architectural ventilation structure made of masonry, clay or metal that isolates hot toxic exhaust gases or smoke produced by a boiler, stove, furnace, incinerator, or fireplace from human living areas. Chimneys are typically ...
were a prominent local landmark, visible from along a stretch of the Tyne valley running from
Bensham Bensham is a suburban area in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. The area consists mainly of residential properties, with a range of predominantly terraced housing, built between the late 1890s and the 1980s. Commun ...
in Gateshead to
Heddon-on-the-Wall Heddon-on-the-Wall is a village and civil parish in Northumberland, England, located on Hadrian's Wall. Heddon-on-the-Wall is roughly west of the centre of Newcastle upon Tyne, and just outside Throckley. In 2011 the parish had a population of ...
in Northumberland. When in operation, the B station briefly featured in ''
Get Carter ''Get Carter'' is a 1971 British gangster film, gangster thriller film, written and directed by Mike Hodges in his directorial debut and starring Michael Caine, Ian Hendry, John Osborne, Britt Ekland and Bryan Mosley. Based on Ted Lewis (write ...
'', a 1971 crime film starring
Michael Caine Sir Michael Caine (born Maurice Joseph Micklewhite, 14 March 1933) is a retired English actor. Known for his distinct Cockney accent, he has appeared in more than 160 films over Michael Caine filmography, a career that spanned eight decades an ...
. Dunston B appears as part of the film's backdrop, viewed from the now demolished Frank Street in Benwell, as the funeral cortège of the main character's brother Frank leaves a house on the street. The station was also a popular subject for
photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who uses a camera to make photographs. Duties and types of photograp ...
s. It featured in the work of
documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...
and press photographer
Bert Hardy Albert William Thomas Hardy (19 May 1913 – 3 July 1995) was an English documentary and press photographer known for his work published in the ''Picture Post'' magazine between 1941 and 1957. Life and work Born in Blackfriars, Bert Hardy rose ...
, who photographed it from Benwell, using it as a backdrop whilst photographing a mother and child. It was also photographed by Welsh documentary photographer Jimmy Forsyth (photographer) as part of his ''Scotswood Road'' collection.


See also

*
List of power stations in England This is a list of current and former electricity-generating power stations in England. For lists in the rest of the UK, including proposed stations, see the #See also, see also section below. :''Note that Department for Energy Security and Net ...
*
Timeline of the UK electricity supply industry This timeline outlines the key developments in the United Kingdom electricity industry from the start of electricity supplies in the 1870s to the present day. It identifies significant developments in technology for the generation, transmission and ...
*
Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom Total energy consumption in the United Kingdom was 142.0million tonnes of oil equivalent (1,651TWh) in 2019. In 2014, the UK had an energy consumption ''per capita'' of 2.78tonnes of oil equivalent (32.3MWh) compared to a world average of 1 ...
*
Electricity Act 1947 The Electricity Act 1947 ( 10 & 11 Geo. 6. c. 54) was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which nationalised, or bought into state control, the electricity supply industry in Great Britain. It established a central authority called t ...
* Electricity Act 1957 *
Northern Electric Northern Electric was an electricity supply and distribution company serving north east England. History It had its origins as the North Eastern Electricity Board, formed as part of the nationalisation of the electricity industry by the Ele ...


References


External links


iSee Gateshead
– Various photographs from the construction of the B Station

– An appeal for former employees of the power station, after a former worker at the station died from
peritoneal mesothelioma Peritoneal mesothelioma is the name given to the cancer that attacks the lining of the abdomen. This type of cancer affects the lining that protects the contents of the abdomen and provides a lubricating fluid to enable the organs to move and work ...
a rare form of cancer caused by exposure to asbestos fibers.
YouTube
– Footage from a train passing the power station in 1983 {{Good article Coal-fired power stations in England Power stations in North East England Demolished power stations in the United Kingdom Demolished buildings and structures in Tyne and Wear 1910 establishments in England 1981 disestablishments in England Gateshead Buildings and structures demolished in 1986