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County of London Electric Supply Company

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The County of London Electric Supply Company Limited (C.L.E.S.Co) was a British electricity undertaking. It was incorporated as a public company in 1891 to generate and supply electricity to parts of south west London and two parishes adjacent to the City of London. It owned and operated power stations at Wandsworth and City Road. From 1925 it cooperated with three other London companies, with the intention of centralising electricity generation in the new, high thermal efficiency, power station at Barking. The company was abolished in March 1948 upon the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry.

County of London Electric Supply Company Limited
FormerlyCounty of London Electric Lighting Company Limited; County of London and Brush Provincial Electric Lighting Company Limited
Company typePublic limited company
IndustryEnergy: electricity generation and supply
Founded30 June 1891
Defunct31 March 1948
FateDissolved by nationalisation
SuccessorBritish Electricity Authority and London Electricity Board
Headquarters
London
Area served
County of London, Essex and Kent
Key people
See text
Production output
2,099 GWh (1946)
ServicesElectricity supply
Revenue£10,469 (1897), £3,602,230 (1936)

Background

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The County of London Electric Lighting Company Limited was registered on 30 June 1891, to supply electricity to areas of north, south and south west London.[1] The company was granted Provisional Orders to supply electricity as follows:[1]

  • 1892 – County of London North (St Luke and Clerkenwell);
  • 1892 – District of Wandsworth Board of Works, plus the parishes of Putney, Wandsworth, Tooting Graveney, Streatham and Clapham;
  • 1895 – St Olave Southwark;
  • 1896 – Camberwell;
  • 1897 – Holborn (east part);
  • 1897 – County of London east for Mile End Old Town, St George’s in the East, and Limehouse District Board of Works.

The Company changed its name to the County of London and Brush Provincial Electric Lighting Company Limited in 1893.[1]  By 1903 it was called the County of London Electric Supply Company Limited.[2]

Operations

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Management

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The company had five chairmen between 1896 and 1948:

The company management board in 1922 was composed of:[3]

The company’s registered address was Moorgate Court, Moorgate Place, London EC2.[3]

Power stations

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The company initially built two power stations, one at City Road and one in Wandsworth.

City Road power station

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The City Road power station was located on the City Road basin on the Regent's Canal (51°31'48"N 0°05'50"W). It had coal-fired boilers generating steam for Brush compound engines coupled directly to Mordey dynamos. The initial plant installed was capable of supplying 80,000 8-candle-power lamps.[1]

In 1923 the plant at the City Road power station comprised:[4]

These machines had a total generating capacity of 10,500 kW of AC and 1,725 kW of DC.

The electricity available to customers was:

  • 2-phase AC 50 Hz 104 Volts
  • DC 530 Volts

City Road power station was not a 'selected station' under the Central Electricity Board's 1926 scheme, as a consequence the Company decommissioned it in 1929.[5]

Wandsworth power station

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See main article: Wandsworth power station

The plant at Wandsworth power station used coal-fired boilers and Brush Universal machines coupled directly to Mordey dynamos. The plant was capable of supplying 40,000 8-candle-power lamps. In addition to the power stations, work included the laying of cables in St Luke, Clerkenwell, Wandsworth, Putney, Streatham, Clapham, Holborn and Camberwell.[1]

By 1923 the plant comprised:[1]

  • Coal-fired boilers generating up to 322,400 lb/h (40.62 kg/s) of steam which was supplied to:
  • Generators:
    • 1 × 1,000 kW reciprocating engine,
    • 3 × 1,500 kW steam turbo-alternators,
    • 2 × 5,000 kW steam turbo-alternators,
    • 2 × 6,000 kW steam turbo-alternators.

These machines had a total generating capacity of 27,500 kW of alternating current.

The electricity available to customers was:[4]

  • 2-phase AC 50 Hz 205 and 404 Volts
  • 3-phase AC 50 Hz 205 and 404 Volts
  • DC 410 Volts

Wandsworth power station was operational until 1964.[5]

Electricity supply

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The business of the company increased to meet the rising demand for electricity. The following table summarises the growth of the company in terms of capacity of the plant, the electricity load, the amount of current sold, and the number of customers.[1][2][4][6][7][8][9][10][3][11][12]

County of London Electric Supply Company operating data, 1897–1946
Year Capacity of plant, kW Max load, kW Electricity sold, MWh No. of customers Connected load, kW Load factor, per cent
1897 (City Road) 333
1897 (Wandsworth) 117
1904 9,250 5,342 5,755 5,222 12.3
1907 13,970
1912 20,300 12,800 22,512 20,246 44,763 20.0
1913 25,743 22,315
1914 28,012 24,212
1915 30,562 25,913
1916 35,029 26,994
1917 37,595 27,998
1918 40,326 28,400
1919 34,000 25,700 42,488 31,390 82,224 18.9
1921 38,000 27,900 49,553 43,000 87,902 27.3
1922 38,000 29,800 51,220 91,550 26.1
1923 39,725 37,650 65,679 54,000 119,241 25.7
1931 509,829
1932 604,599
1933 412,901 250,100 693,374 163,982 492,269 38.3
1934 776,094
1935 885,403
1936 412,500 319,951 1,034,605 268,769 828,462 40.7
1937 1,914,953
1946 (Wandsworth) 19,160 21,228
1946 (Barking) 418,200 2,077,998

The growth in sales of electricity, in GWh, is shown on the following graphs.

Electricity use

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Electricity was originally used for lighting but ‘power’ uses were soon established. The following table illustrates the quantities and changing patterns of use.[7][4][9]

End use of electricity, 1919–1936, MWh
Use, MWh Year
1919 1921 1922 1923 1936
Public lighting 99 276 196 112 4,960
Domestic supply 38,243 14,026 13,177 15,748 200,338
Power and heat 29,670 31,562 34,750 194,561
Traction 4,146 0 0 0 66,912
Bulk supply 5,580 6,285 7,633 567,837
Total 42,488 49,553 51,220 58,242 1,034,606

Financial statistics

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The capital required to establish, build and operate the business was raised through the offer of shares. Capital expenditure was needed for the purchase of land, buildings, machinery, mains, transformers, meters, electrical instruments, legal costs, fixtures and furniture at the stations.[1] The capital expenditure in 1896 and 1897, associated with the commissioning of the power stations at City Road and Wandsworth, amounted to:[1]

Capital expenditure, 1896–97
Year 1896 1897
City Road £155,596 £214,257
Wandsworth £117,126 £196,543

Profits were made through the sale of electricity which provided an income for the Company and its shareholders. An example of the sums involved is shown in the table.[1][6][7][8][9]

Sales revenue, working cost and profit, 1897–1923
Year Revenue from electricity sales Working cost of generation Excess of revenue  over expenditure
1897  (City Road) £7,141 £4,176 £2,965
1897 (Wandsworth) £3,328 £2,047 £1,281
1912 £216,665 £87,954 £117,145
1919 £543,284 £301,603 £235,174
1922 £723,226 £402,817 £340,428
1923 £835,348 £358,122 £502,937
1936 £3,602,230 £2,421,204 £1,181,026

Shareholders dividends were paid throughout the operational life of the company. Dividends expressed as a percentage of the total capital raised in a given year were as shown, together with the average dividends paid by the London company electricity undertakings.[6][7]

County of London Company shareholder dividends 1895-1919
Year 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907
Dividend % 0 0.59 1.11 1.46 3.10 4.48 4.77 4.83 4.75 4.69 4.98 5.00 5.00
Average dividend % 4.01 4.66 5.54 5.10 5.15 4.60 5.29 5.55 5.51 5.79 5.65 5.40 5.14
Year 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
Dividend % 5.05 5.11 5.05 5.28 5.34 5.57 5.64 5.63 5.63 5.63 5.82 6.00
Average dividend % 5.12 5.07 5.07 5.11 5.18 5.33 5.10 4.87 4.68 5.32 4.96 5.76

Expansion

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The company expanded its operations, particularly in East London and into south Essex and Kent.

By 1913 the County of London Company was supplying the Metropolitan Boroughs of Bermondsey, Camberwell, Finsbury, Holborn, Lambeth, Southwark and Wandsworth; the Urban Districts of Merton and Morden, Romford, and Tilbury; and the Rural Districts of Croydon, Orsett and Tilbury.[6]

To meet the requirements of the expanded supply area, capital expenditure on new plant and equipment was required, as shown on the table below.[6][7]

Capital expenditure, 1907–1919.
Year 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912
Capital expenditure £50,926 £84,215 £64,667 £71,135 £62,897 £95,723
Year 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919
Capital expenditure £167,680 £78,848 £53,022 £63,616 £88,398 £149,116

Electricity supplies to further areas continued. By 1937 the Company was supplying electricity additionally to: the Metropolitan Boroughs of Barking, Beddington and Wallington, Dagenham, Mitcham, Reigate, Sutton and Cheam and Wimbledon; the Urban Districts of Banstead, Billericay, Brentwood, Carshalton, Caterham and Warlingham, Hornchurch, Thurrock, Wanstead and Woodford; and the Rural Districts of Epping, and Godstone.[9]

The Company supplied users such as the South Metropolitan Electric Tramways and Lighting Company (from 1916, supplying 2,021.0 MWh in 1919); the South London Electric Supply Corporation (from 1917, supplying 5,340.4 MWh in 1923).[8]

Between 1918 and 1936 the Company acquired 14 other electricity companies.[13] It was able to consolidate development over a large area of south east England through its Kent Power Company subsidiary.[13]

In 1920, the County of London Electric Supply Company applied for permission to build a power station at Creekmouth in Barking capable of expansion to 600 MW. To finance the construction the Company issued shares, there were offers in 1921 and 1922. The 1922 offer consisted of 500,000 six per cent cumulative preference shares and 500,000 ordinary shares.[3] Barking A station was built, and was commissioned in 1925.[5]

The County of London Company and three others in south and east London promoted the London Electricity (No. 1) Act 1925 (15 & 16 Geo. 5. c. lxii). The four companies were: the City of London Electric Lighting Company; the County of London Electric Supply Company Limited; the South London Electric Supply Corporation Limited; and the South Metropolitan Electric Light and Power Company Limited. They established a joint committee to specify how generating stations of each company were operated.[14] The companies remained district electricity supply undertakings; although they were physically joined with interconnecting cables.[14] The companies envisaged that power stations such as Barking would provide enough capacity for their electricity requirements. The Act required equal consideration for the interests of shareholders and consumers. Dividends to shareholders were limited to 7 percent per year and the funds that could be carried forward in the accounts were restricted. Profits above these conditions formed a ‘consumers’ benefit’ in the form of lower prices.[14]

The company built Barking B power station which was commissioned in 1933.[5]

Government policy

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Under the terms of the Electricity (Supply) Act 1926 (16 & 17 Geo. 5. c. 51)[15] the Central Electricity Board (CEB) was established.[16] The CEB identified high efficiency ‘selected’ power stations that would supply electricity most effectively. The CEB also constructed the national grid (1927–33) to connect power stations within a region.

City Road power station was not a selected station, as a consequence the Company decommissioned it in 1929.[5]

The British electricity supply industry was nationalised in 1948 under the provisions of the Electricity Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. 6. c. 54).[17] The County of London Electric Supply Company undertaking was abolished, ownership of Wandsworth and Barking power stations were vested in the British Electricity Authority, and subsequently the Central Electricity Authority and the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB).[16] At the same time the electricity distribution and sales responsibilities of the County of London electricity undertaking were transferred to the London Electricity Board (LEB).

Wandsworth power station was operational until 1964.[5]

Barking A and B power stations were operational until 1969 and 1976 respectively.[5]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Garcke, Emile (1898). Manual of Electrical Undertakings 1898-99 vol. 3. London: P. S. King and Son. pp. 54–60.
  2. ^ a b London County Council (1905). London Statistics 1904–05 vol. XV. London: London County Council. pp. 434–5.
  3. ^ a b c d "The County of London Electric Supply Company". The Times. 24 July 1922. p. 16.
  4. ^ a b c d Electricity Commissioners (1925). Electricity Supply – 1920–23. London: HMSO. pp. 156–59, 394–99.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Metadyne. "London's power stations". metadyne. Retrieved 2 September 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d e London County Council (1915). London Statistics 1913–14 vol. XXIV. London: London County Council. pp. 536–63.
  7. ^ a b c d e London County Council (1922). London Statistics 1920–21 vol. XXVII. London: London County Council. pp. 276–305.
  8. ^ a b c London County Council (1926). London Statistics 1924–25 vol. XXX. London: London County Council. pp. 290–309.
  9. ^ a b c d London County Council (1939). London Statistics 1936–38 vol. 41. London: London County Council. pp. 370–93.
  10. ^ London County Council London Statistics 1932–33 vol.37, LCC 1934 333–51 (1934). London Statistics 1932–33 vol. 37. London: London County Council. pp. 333–51.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ "The County of London Electric Supply Company". The Times. 13 December 1938. p. 23.
  12. ^ Electricity Commission (1947). Generation of Electricity in Great Britain year ended 31 December 1946. London: HMSO. p. 7.
  13. ^ a b Hannah, Leslie (1979). Electricity before Nationalisation. London: Macmillan. p. 247. ISBN 0333220862.
  14. ^ a b c Murray, S. (2018). "Electrifying the City: Power and Profit at the City of London Electric Lighting Company Limited". The London Journal. 43 (1): 72–91. doi:10.1080/03058034.2017.1357939. S2CID 158884197.
  15. ^ "Electricity (Supply) Act 1926". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
  16. ^ a b Electricity Council (1987). Electricity supply in the United Kingdom: a Chronology 1987. London: Electricity Council. pp. 45, 60, 69, 73. ISBN 085188105X.
  17. ^ "Electricity Act 1947". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
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