Greenhill power station

In 1890 Oldham Corporation applied for a provisional order under the Electric Lighting Acts to generate and supply electricity to the town. The {{visible anchor|Oldham Electric Lighting Order 1890}} was granted by the Board of Trade and was confirmed by Parliament through the Electric Lighting Orders Confirmation (No. 3) Act 1890 (54 & 55 Vict. c. clxxxviii).{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Local Acts 1890|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/changes/chron-tables/local/96|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=20 October 2020|website=Legislation.gov.uk}} The power station was built in Gas Street at Rhodes Bank (53°32'24"N 2°06'22"W)Ordnance Survey 25-inch England Lancashire XCVIII.6 (Oldham; Royton) published 1922. and first supplied electricity on 20 March 1894.{{Cite book|last=Garcke|first=Emile|title=Manual of Electrical Undertakings 1898-99 vol. 3|publisher=P. S. King and Son|year=1898|isbn=|location=London|pages=276–78}}

Following the First World War the demand for electricity was outpacing the available supply. Oldham Corporation built Greenhill power station adjacent to the railway in Churchill Street East ({{coord|53|32|21|N|2|06|12|W}}). Greenhill station was first commissioned in 1921 with further generating sets commissioned in 1923 and 1924. In addition Oldham Corporation built another electricity generating station at Slacks Valley known as Chadderton power station which was first commissioned in November 1929.

The original plant at Rhodes Bank power station comprised Willans engines and Charlesworth Hall and Siemens dynamos. To maintain supplies at times of peak demand Crompton-Howell and EPS accumulators were provided. Electricity supplies commenced on 20 March 1894. In 1898 the generating capacity was 657 kW and the maximum load was 413 kW. By 1898 {{convert|9,330|yd|m}} of electricity mains had been laid.

In 1923 the generating plant at Greenhill power station comprised:{{Cite book|last=Electricity Commissioners|title=Electricity Supply – 1920–23|publisher=HMSO|year=1925|isbn=|location=London|pages=70–73, 308–313}}

• Coal-fired boilers producing up to 383,500 lb/h (48.3 kg/s) of steam.  Coal was delivered to the power station via a dedicated railway siding. Steam was supplied to:
• Generators:
• 1 × 2,000 kW steam turbo-alternator
• 2 × 3,000 kW steam turbo-alternators
• 2 × 6,000 kW steam turbo-alternators

These machines gave a total output of 20,000 kW of alternating current.

A variety of electricity supplies were available to consumers:

• 3-phase, 50 Hz AC at 400 and 230 Volts
• Direct current 420 and 210 Volts
• Direct current Traction supply 500 Volts

In 1954 the plant at Greenhill power station comprised:{{Cite book|last=Garrett|first=Frederick|title=Garcke's Manual of Electricity Supply vol. 56|publisher=Electrical Press|year=1959|isbn=|location=London|pages=A-58, A-121, B-213}}

• Boilers:
• 3 × 25,000 lb/h (3.15 kg/s) Babcock & Wilcox boilers with chain grate stokers
• 2 × 15,000 lb/h (1.9 kg/s) Babcock & Wilcox boilers with chain grate stokers
• 4 × 10,000 lb/h (1.26 kg/s) Babcock & Wilcox boilers with chain grate stokers

The boilers had a total evaporative capacity of 145,000 lb/h (18.3 kg/s), steam conditions were 200 psi and 650 °F (13.8 bar, 343 °C), which was supplied to:

• Turbo-alternators:
• 2 × 6.6 MW Metropolitan-Vickers turbo-alternators, generating at 6.6 kV
• 1 × 4 MW Metropolitan-Vickers turbo-alternator, generating at 6.6 kV

The installed capacity was 17.2 MW with an output capacity of 10 MW.

There were also:

• 2 × 500 kW GEC motor generators
• 1 × 1.25 MW Westinghouse rotary convertor
• 3 × 1.5 MW Westinghouse rotary convertors

Condenser cooling water was cooled in five Premier chimney type cooling towers with a capacity of 1.36 million gallons per hour (1.7 m³/s).

In 1898 and there were 213 customers supplied with a total of 305,859 kWh of electricity plus 16,444 kWh for public lighting. The sale of electricity provided revenue of £5,862 for Oldham Corporation against a generating cost of £1,486.

The operating data for the period 1921–23 was:

Under the terms of the Electricity (Supply) Act 1926 (16 & 17 Geo. 5. c. 51){{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Electricity (Supply) Act 1926|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo5/16-17/51/contents/enacted|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=20 October 2020|website=Legislation.gov.uk}} the Central Electricity Board (CEB) was established in 1926.{{Cite book|last=Electricity Council|title=Electricity supply in the United Kingdom: a Chronology|publisher=Electricity Council|year=1987|isbn=085188105X|location=London|pages=45, 60, 69, 73}} The CEB identified high efficiency 'selected' power stations that would supply electricity most effectively; Greenhill was designated a selected station. The CEB also constructed the National Grid (1927–33) to connect power stations within a region. Oldham Greenhill became part of one of the three grid rings in Lancashire. This local ring connected Oldham, Manchester, Tame Valley and Stockport.{{Cite book|last=Hannah|first=Leslie|title=Electricity before Nationalisation|publisher=Macmillan|year=1979|isbn=0333220862|location=London|pages=121}}

Greenhill power station operating data for 1946 is given below, data for Chadderton power station is shown for comparison:{{Cite book|last=Electricity Commissioners|title=Generation of Electricity in Great Britain year ended 31 December 1946|publisher=HMSO|year=1947|isbn=|location=London|pages=12}}

The British electricity supply industry was nationalised in 1948 under the provisions of the Electricity Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. 6. c. 54).{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Electricity Act 1947|url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo6/10-11/54/contents/enacted|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=20 October 2020|website=Legislation.gov.uk}} The Oldham electricity undertaking was abolished, ownership of Greenhill power station was vested in the British Electricity Authority, and subsequently the Central Electricity Authority and the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB). At the same time the electricity distribution and sales responsibilities of the Oldham electricity undertaking were transferred to the North Western Electricity Board (NORWEB).

Operating data for the period 1954–58 was:

The Oldham electricity supply district, covered an area of {{convert|29|mi2|km2|abbr=off}} and included the County Borough of Oldham, the borough of Middleton, and the districts of Chadderton, Crompton, Lees, and Royton. It served a population of 215,800 (1958). The number of consumers and electricity sold was:

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

There were {{convert|747|mi|km}} of high voltage mains in the district comprising {{convert|728|mi|km}} of underground mains and {{convert|19|mi|km}} of overhead cables.

Greenhill power station was decommissioned in 1960.Greenhill power station is not mentioned in CEGB Annual reports 1961-63 The buildings were subsequently demolished although a working substation remains on the site.

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

{{Reflist}}

{{North West Power Stations}}

Category:Coal-fired power stations in England

Category:Demolished power stations in the United Kingdom

Category:Former power stations in England

Category:Buildings and structures in Oldham