Rugeley Coal Power Plant
6:49 AM
The Rugeley B station uses two 500 MW generating sets, which can produce 8,760,000 MWh each year. The station usually burns 1.6 million tonnes of coal a year, producing 240,000 tonnes of ash.
Two power stations have stood on the site over the year; Rugeley A Power Station, opened in 1963, and Rugeley B Power Station, built in 1972.
Rugeley A Coal Power Plant
Construction of the A station started in 1956, and was commissioned between 1961 and 1962. The station was the first joint venture between the CEGB and NCB. The station took coal directly from the neighbouring Lea Hall Colliery by conveyor belt. The colliery was put into production some 6 months before the first generating unit was commissioned. This was the first such arrangement in Britain. The station was officially opened on 1st October 1963 by The Rt Hon Lord Robens of Woldingham P.C. (NCG chairman) & Sir Christopher Hinton KBE, FRS (CEGB chairman). The Lea Hall colliery was closed and demolished in 1991. One of the 5 cooling towers built at Rugeley was the world's first large dry cooling tower, and the first large scale experiment with a design aimed at eliminating water loss. On occasions this tower was used by the RAF for parachute development. Rugeley A was also the first power station in Britain to be controlled entirely from a central control room. The total cost of building it was £30m.
The station had five 120Mw generating sets which gave it a generating capacity of 600 megawatts. It was initially operated by the Central Electricity Generating Board, but following privatisation in 1990, was handed over to National Power. Two of the stations generating units were decommissioned in 1994, with the other three following in 1995. The station was demolished later in 1995.
Rugeley B Coal Power Plant
Rugeley B Coal Power Plant was commissioned in 1970 to work with the A station, and was completed by 1972. With both stations in operation, 850 people were employed at the stations in 1983. The current figure is only 146. A Flue Gas Desulfurization plant was constructed and commissioned at the B station in 2009. This will allow it to comply with environmental legislation and continue to generate electricity.
| Rugeley power station | |
|---|---|
| Country | England |
| Locale | Rugeley |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | A station: 1956 |
| Commission date | A station: 1961-62 B station: 1970-72 |
| Operator(s) | Central Electricity Generating Board (1963-1990) National Power (1990-2000) International Power (2000-present) |
| Power station information | |
| Primary fuel | Coal |
| Power generation information | |
| Installed capacity | 1,000 MW |
