The Hongkong Electric Company, Limited (HK Electric)

Electricity Generation

Lamma Power Station Lamma Power Station

The Hongkong Electric Company, Limited (HK Electric) started operation on 1 December 1890 at 6:00 p.m. and lighted up Hong Kong's first electric street lights in the Central Business District. HEC established its first power station in Wan Chai and the second power station, North Point Power Station, started operation in 1919. The oil-fired Ap Lei Chau Power Station which was the third power station of the Company, was commissioned in 1968 and decommissioned in 1989. Starting from 1990, electricity generation has been entirely carried out at Lamma Power Station.

Lamma Power Station is located at a 50-hectare site at Po Lo Tsui at Lamma Island, which was gazetted and granted by the Hong Kong Government to the Company in December 1978.

Central Control Room for Lamma Power Station

Central Control Room for Lamma Power Station

The Lamma Power Station and Lamma Power Station Extension have a total installed capacity of 3,736MW with eight coal-fired units, five gas turbine units, one wind turbine, one 550kW solar power system and two combined cycle units. The station was developed in three stages. Stage I, which comprises three 250MW coal-fired units, was completed in 1984. Stage II, comprising three 350MW coal-fired units, one 55MW, and six 125MW gas turbines, was completed in 1991. Stage III, comprising two 350MW coal-fired units, was completed in 1997. In 2002, two 125MW gas turbines were converted to a combined cycle unit with generation capacity of 345MW. Furthermore, the first 335MW gas-fired combined cycle unit was synchronised and started its commercial operation in 2006.

Turbine Hall in Lamma Power Station

Turbine Hall in Lamma Power Station

The coal-fired generating units at Lamma Power Station are basically designed for 100% coal firing. To maintain the flexibility in fuel selection, capability for oil firing has been catered for. For economical reasons, all units burn 100% coal under normal operating conditions. Oil firing will only be used for start-up, shutdown or flame stabilization at low loads.

To meet the electricity demand of Hong Kong in the 21st century, two of the simple-cycle 125MW gas turbines were converted into a combined-cycle block with the addition of two heat recovery steam generators and one steam turbine. Waste heat in the flue gas of the gas turbines is utilized to increase the electricity generation capacity. It was then further converted to use natural gas as fuel to generate electricity. All the conversion were completed in 2008. Also, Hong Kong's first commercial-scale wind turbine was put into operation in Lamma in 2006. In July 2010, HK Electric commissioned a commercial-scale solar power system, which is the largest of its kind in Hong Kong, and also the first large scale project applying the amorphous silicon thin film photovoltaic (TFPV) panels in the territory. The total installed capacity is 550 kW. Moreover, Lamma Power Station was expanded for housing additional combined-cycle gas turbine units. The first gas-fired combined cycle unit was commissioned in 2006. For details, please refer to Lamma Wind Power Station and Lamma Power Station Extension.