Power Station West - Belfast skyline changes with the demolition of power station chimneys

09/07/2007

The Belfast skyline changed on Friday evening as three 240 feet chimneys at Power Station West were demolished. The coal fired power station, which was the largest in Ireland when it opened in 1961, employed over 400 staff and produced 240 megawatts (MW) of electricity at its peak. The station was closed in March 2002.  
 
The three chimneys were demolished by a series of controlled explosions carried out by specialist firm Brown and Mason Ltd, who have been carefully preparing the station for demolition over the last eighteen months. The remainder of the station will be demolished over the next eight months.  
 
Robin Greer, Northern Ireland Electricity Communications Manager, said, “This is a landmark event. The demolition of the chimneys not only changes the Belfast skyline, it marks a new opportunity for power generation in Northern Ireland. Once the demolition project is completed, the site will be kept in a landbank reserved for future electricity generation.”  
 
Power Station West was bought by NIGEN in 1992 following privatisation of the power stations across Northern Ireland. NIE owns the land the station is built on under a long-term lease from Belfast Harbour Commissioners. Since the closure of the station NIE has been responsible for managing the site, including the decommissioning and demolition of the power station.  
 

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