Westerholt Power Station

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The power station coal- fired Westerholt was a thermal power plant in Gelsenkirchen- Hassel. The power plant consisted of two blocks built in the 1960s, with 150 megawatts. The power plant was shut down on 13 May 2003 and later demolished.

History

1959 is the first 150 MW unit of the power plant to the grid. Two years later comes the second 150 megawatt block. About 230 workers were employed in the power plant. On September 12, 1981, topping the 300 -meter high chimney was celebrated. The chimney measured at the foot of 23.5 m, at the head 9,10 m.

2001, the second block was taken out of service in 2002 followed by the first block. The power plant has in its 43- year term 63 billion kWh of electrical energy as well as 5 billion kWh of thermal energy ( district heating and industrial steam). Good 28 million tons of coal were converted to electricity, almost everything from the mine Westerholt.

Demolition of the chimney

The power plant had a 300 meter high reinforced concrete chimney, which was completed in 1981. At that time they tried to disperse the pollutants having a very high chimney over large areas. Already in the 1980s, the desulfurization of flue gases was also obligatory for old power plants, soon after the denitrification, ie the reduction of nitrogen oxides. Two electric compressors (10 kV ) engines produced about 250,000 cubic meters (5 bar) compressed air for a buffered air grid.

The demolition should take place on 12 November 2006 originally, because of opposition from BP because of their underground lines, this date was canceled and later the Sunday, December 3, 2006 10:56 clock, given as new date.

The chimney was blown up by a so-called Faltsprengung ( blowing up in two levels ). These two planes were in 183 and 54 meters height. As expected, the central part smashed the lower stump, further demolition and cleanup were relieved.

For trouble with the numerous spectators spot the short-term forward the demolition caused by three minutes. Many visitors wanted to hold the blowing up on photo and video. Even the WDR, which broadcast the event from 10:45 clock was located at 10:52 clock still in the middle of an interview with the explosives expert and had the camera position swirl quickly to the collapsing chimney. The alarm sounded fairly quiet at 10:46 clock, which was blowing at 10:53 clock.

Reuse

Since the spring of 2004 at this location a heating plant, the VCs Westerholt, operated. There collateralize the six boilers operated by E.ON district heating network in the northern Ruhr area.

As only a few hundred meters away has mine Westerholt it was after the adjacent - (now Herten - Westerholt ) named city Westerholt - at that time still independent.