Brimsdown Power Station

Infobox UK power station
static_

static_image_caption=Brimsdown Power Station 1974, showing part of the coal handling plant and 3 of the 7 cooling towers
os_grid_reference=TQ368976
latitude=51.660484
longitude=-0.02180
country=England
region=London
metropolitan_county=Greater London
metropolitan_borough=Enfield
operator=Central Electricity Generating Board
fuel=Coal-fired
opened=1907
closed=1974

Brimsdown Power Station was a coal-fired power station on the Lee Navigation at Brimsdown in Enfield, North London.

History

The first station was opened by the North Metropolitan Electric Power Supply Co. in 1907, primarily to supply the local tramways. The station was extended between 1924 and 1955, supplying power to the wider area of Enfield and Essex. ['Enfield: Public services', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 5: Hendon, Kingsbury, Great Stanmore, Little Stanmore, Edmonton Enfield, Monken Hadley, South Mimms, Tottenham (1976), pp. 243-245. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=26956. Date accessed: 23 November 2007.]

Brimsdown Power Station was the only known British example of the Loeffler boiler system. It was a system that enjoyed a brief vogue in the 1930s, mainly in Europe. It overcame metallurgical and feedwater quality problems but rapid advances rendered it unnecessary quite quickly. [http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/133290]

Coal was supplied by barge and rail. The station had seven cooling towers which were visible from a wide area. It was run by the nationalised Central Electricity Generating Board in its later years, before closing in 1974.

A 392MW gas-fired CCGT station was opened on a part of the original site in 1999, known as Enfield Power Station or Enfield Energy Centre rather than Brimsdown Power Station. This has been operated by E.ON since 2005.

References