Kingsnorth power station
| Kingsnorth | |
|---|---|
Kingsnorth Power Station
Viewed from the west in October 2007 |
|
| Country | England |
| Location |
Hoo St Werburgh Kent |
| Coordinates | 51°25′08″N 0°36′10″E / 51.418947°N 0.602702°ECoordinates: 51°25′08″N 0°36′10″E / 51.418947°N 0.602702°E |
| Commission date | 1973 |
| Decommission date | 2012 |
| Operator(s) |
Central Electricity Generating Board (1973–1990) PowerGen (1990–2002) E.ON UK (2002–2012) |
| Thermal power station | |
| Primary fuel | Coal-fired |
| Secondary fuel | Oil-fired |
| Tertiary fuel | Biofuel |
| grid reference TQ809721 | |
Kingsnorth is a decommissioned dual-fired coal and oil power station on the Hoo Peninsula at Medway in Kent, South East England. The four-unit station was operated by energy firm E.ON UK, and had a generating capacity of 2000 megawatts. It was capable of operating on either coal or oil though in practice oil was used only as a secondary fuel or for startup. It was also capable of co-firing biofuel, up to a maximum of 10% of the station's fuel mix. A replacement power station, also coal-fired, was considered by owners E.ON, but plans were abandoned. The proposed replacement attracted substantial public protests and criticism, including the 2008 Camp for Climate Action.
Built on the site of the former World War I airship base RNAS Kingsnorth, Kingsnorth power station was constructed between 1963 and 1973 by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB). From 1975 to the early 1980s, Kingsnorth was linked to the London power grid by HVDC Kingsnorth, one of the few examples of high-voltage direct current transmission then in use.
On the evening of 2 January 2010, a fire broke out in one of the pump rooms of the power station. The fire was put out by fifteen fire engines and five specialist units, though the building was badly damaged and had to be shut down.
The station closed as a result of the EU's Large Combustion Plant Directive (LCPD), which requires stations that are not equipped with Flue Gas Desulphurisation (FGD) technology to close after 20,000 hours of operation from 1 January 2008 or the end of 2015, whichever comes first. Kingsnorth ceased generation on 17 December 2012, having consumed all its LCPD hours. Demolition of the coal handling plant commenced on Thursday 23 October 2014 with series of controlled explosions. The station's turbine hall was demolished on 9 July 2015.
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Wikipedia