Pandon Dene Power Station

At the outset of their operations in 1889, the Newcastle-upon-Tyne Electric Supply Company (NESCo) were confined to operating within the eastern half of Newcastle. Their initial objective was to supply electricity for "4,500 ten candle-power lamps, of which 3,000 could be alight at one time." NESCo's first major step toward achieving this goal was the erection of their first power station, at Pandon Dene in the city's east end. The station was opened in 1890. Charles Merz worked at the station in 1892, prior to becoming a founder of his own electrical engineering consultancy Merz & McLellan.

Upon opening, the station generated electricity using two 75 kilowatts (kW) Mordey Alternator's, each driven by a conventional Robey steam engine, meaning the alternators operated at a slow speed. This gave the station an initial generating capacity of 150 kW. The Mordey Generator could not operate in parallel and so each time load was transferred from one machine to another, supply would be interrupted and customers would notice a distinct flicker in the lights. Later in the station's history, further generators were installed, the largest of which had a capacity of 500 kW.