Neptune Bank Power Station

Neptune Bank Power Station
Location of Neptune Bank Power Station in Tyne and Wear
Country	England
Location	Wallsend
Coordinates	54°59′06″N 1°32′10″W / 54.985°N 1.536°W / 54.985; -1.536Coordinates: 54°59′06″N 1°32′10″W / 54.985°N 1.536°W / 54.985; -1.536
Status	Demolished
Construction began	1900
Commission date	18 June 1901
Decommission date	1915
Operator(s)	Newcastle upon Tyne Electric Supply Company
Thermal power station
Primary fuel	Coal
Power generation
Units operational	Four 700 kW (1901) Two 1,500 kW (1902)
Make and model	Parsons
Nameplate capacity	2,800 kW (1901) 3,000 kW (1902)
grid reference NZ299655

Neptune Bank Power Station was a coal-fired power station situated on the River Tyne at Wallsend near Newcastle upon Tyne. Commissioned in 1901 by the Newcastle upon Tyne Electric Supply Company, the station was the first in the world to provide electricity for purposes other than domestic and street lighting. It was also the first in the world to generate electricity using three-phase electrical power distribution at a voltage of 5,500 volts.

The station had an initial generating capacity of 2,800 kW, which was increased to 3,000 kW a year after the station opened, with the introduction of two 1,500 kW Parsons turbo alternators, the largest ever built at that time. The station closed in 1915, following the completion of an extension to Carville Power Station and the opening of Dunston Power Station.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the use of electricity for general purposes began to be considered, and the Newcastle upon Tyne Electric Supply Company (NESCo) realised the potential it offered for development. In June 1899, the Walker and Wallsend Union Gas Company (WWUGC) acquired Parliamentary powers for the supply of electricity to the area around Wallsend. In January 1900 they erected Neptune Bank power station near the North Eastern Railway's (NER) North Tyneside Loop, midway between Wallsend and Walker. In October 1900, NESCo acquired the entire power station from the WWUGC, with the exception of the cables and sub-station machinery installed for the purpose of supplying the works in the area in which the WWUGC had obtained Parliamentary powers. the WWUGC continued to buy electricity in bulk from NESCo.