Reading Power Station

The Reading Power Station is a power station supplying electrical power to the Tel Aviv District in central Israel. It is located in the north-western part of the city at the mouth of the Yarkon River, and was built in 1938 during the British Mandate of Palestine.

Reading Power Station is named after Daniel Rufus Isaacs, 1st Marquess of Reading, a chairman of the Israel Electric Corporation.

The power station is made up of number of power producing units. Two units called 'READING A' and two units called 'Reading B', built in the 1950s, are capable of producing 50 megawatts each. Additional units, called 'Reading C' and 'Reading D' (each consisting of two units) have been added in the 1970s.

* 'Reading A' has been shut down in 1967, and has since been converted into a Public Exhibition area.
* 'Reading B' was closed down in 2004.
* 'Reading C' was shut down in 1981, and today contains a memorial for Yitzhak Rabin.
* At present only 'Reading D' is in operation, with each unit capable of producing 214 megawatts.

Reading Power Station has continuously been accused by environmental groups of causing severe pollution, both to the air in the Tel Aviv urban area, as well as to the water of the Yarkon River.

In early 2006, the station was partially shut down, due to failure to comply with environmental regulations which required it to shift to natural gas instead of crude oil as its main fuel. Since then the station has reopened, and is now powered exclusively by natural gas.

External links

* [http://www.environment.gov.il/bin/en.jsp?enPage=e_BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=Object&enDispWho=News^l2903&enZone=e_news Article in the Israeli Ministry of Environment Website (2006)]
* [http://www.tam.co.il/7_5_2004/chdashot3.htm An article about the Power Station shutdown (Hebrew)]
* [http://www.sviva.gov.il/bin/en.jsp?enPage=BlankPage&enDisplay=view&enDispWhat=Zone&enDispWho=riding&enZone=riding Article in the Israeli Ministry of Environment Website (Hebrew, 2007) ]