| Watford Power Station | |
| Coordinates: | 51.6429°N -0.4043°W |
| Country: | England |
| Location: | Hertfordshire, East of England |
| Owner: | As operator |
| Operator: | Watford Corporation Electricity Department (until 1948) British Electricity Authority (1948–1955) Central Electricity Authority (1955–1957) Central Electricity Generating Board (1958–1990) |
| Th Fuel Primary: | Coal, distillate fuel oil |
| Status: | Demolished |
| Ps Chimneys: | 6 (coal-fired station), 2 gas turbine |
| Ps Cooling Towers: | 2 (coal-fired); 2 gas turbine |
| Ps Cooling Source: | River water and cooling towers (coal-fired), air cooled heat exchangers (gas turbine) |
| Ps Units Operational: | 37.25 MW (in 1967); two 70 MW gas turbine |
| Ps Units Decommissioned: | All |
| Ps Electrical Capacity: | 37.25 MW (in 1967); two 70 MW gas turbines |
| Ps Annual Generation: | (See tables) |
| Construction Began: | 1898 |
| Commissioned: | Coal-fired 1900; gas turbine 1980 |
| Decommissioned: | Coal-fired 1968; gas turbine 1990 |
Watford Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated in Watford's Riverside area. The station was built by the Watford Corporation Electricity Department starting with the installation of cables in 1899 with completion around 1900, near the banks of the River Colne. A gas turbine power station was commissioned in 1980.
The Borough of Watford was authorised to construct an electricity system in 1897 by the Electric Lighting Orders Confirmation (No.3) Act 1897 (60 & 61 Vict. c. lxiii).[1] The power station was built near the Watford and Rickmansworth Railway and a rail siding spurred into the site allowing coal to be brought in from the north Midlands. It appears the original coal-fired power station was a large gothic building with six chimneys; this was utilised until 1968, when the operation became uneconomic.
New generating equipment was added as the demand for electricity increased. The generating capacity, maximum load, and electricity generated and sold was as follows:[2]
| Generating capacity, MW | Maximum load, MW | Electricity generated, GWh | Electricity sold, GWh | ||
| 1912/3 | 1.88 | 1.020 | 1.904 | 1.701 | |
| 1918/9 | 3.50 | 1.185 | 3.694 | 3.170 | |
| 1919/20 | 3.50 | 1.920 | 4.583 | 3.793 | |
| 1923/4 | 4.30 | 3.510 | 8.596 | 6.884 | |
| 1937/8 | 36.22 | 22.18 | 43.446 | 62.702 |
By 1937 the electricity plant comprised 1 × 150 kW reciprocating engine and generator, and 2 × 1850 kW, 1 × 4120 kW, 1 × 6250 kW, 1 × 7,000 kW and 1 × 15,000 kW turbo-alternators. A total of 36.22 MW.[4]
By 1950 the electricity plant comprised 1 × 16.5 MW , 1 × 7.0 MW, 1 × 6.25 MW, 1 ×4.0 MW and 2 × 2.0 MW turbo-alternators. A total of 37.75 MW.[5]
By 1961 the installed capacity of the station was 37.25 megawatts (MW), with an output capacity of 27 MW.[6] The oldest operational generating equipment had been installed in 1918. The chain grate boilers had a total steam generating capacity of 300,000 lb/hr (37.8 kg/s), the steam conditions were 250 psi (17.24 bar) and 399 °C.[7] Water from the River Crane and cooling towers were used to condense steam and provide cooling. In 1950 there was a single cooling tower of 0.25 million gallons per hour. In 1960 there were two cooling towers of 0.25 m.g.p.h. film and Davenport 0.2 m.g.p.h.[8] The overall thermal efficiency of the station in 1967 was 15.45 per cent. The electricity output of the station in its final years was as follows:[9] [10]
| 1947 | 1948 | 1950 | 1954 | 1955 | 1957 | 1958 | 1960/1 | 1961/2 | 1962/3 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | |||
| Electricity, GWh | 43.653 | 44.8 | 55.1 | 53.54 | 46.42 | 48.26 | 37.21 | 36.34 | 20.063 | 21.609 | 24.422 | 32.363 | 23.915 | 27.900 | 28.149 |
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In 1971 the CEGB announced that it was seeking consent to build a new set of gas turbine power stations to meet peak load demands.[11] These would be located near old or redundant stations that were close to centres of demand. The first of these was Letchworth followed by Watford. It was envisaged the plant would cost £6.5 million and be operational in 1975. The project was delayed and the new station at Watford was commissioned in 1980. It had two GEC Gas Turbine Quad Olympus 70 MW oil-fired gas turbines giving a maximum capability of 140 MW.[12] The electricity output of the gas turbine station was as follows:
| 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | |||
| Electricity, GWh | 1.332 | 2.325 | 13.877 | 5.284 | 4.882 | 49.974 | 4.982 |
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The gas turbine station was decommissioned in 1990 and subsequently demolished.
The site is now used for step-down transformers.