Timeline of the UK Electricity supply industry - wikipedia Timeline of the UK Electricity supply industry The following is a list of major events in the history of the United Kingdom 's electricity supply industry. Year Event 1882 The Electric Lighting Act 1882 ( repealed 1989 ) -- allowed the setting up of supply systems by persons, companies or local authorities 1888 The Electric Lighting Act 1888 ( repealed 1989 ) -- amendment to 1882 Act making the setting up of a supply company easier. 1891 London Electric Supply Corporation ( LESCo ) opened Deptford Power Station, UK 's first AC power system, designed by Sebastian Ziani de Ferranti. 1899 The Electric Lighting ( Clauses ) Act 1899 ( repealed 1989 ) 1901 Newcastle upon Tyne Electric Supply Company ( NESCo ) opened Neptune Bank Power Station, the first in the UK to supply three - phase electric power. 1909 The Electric Lighting Act 1909 ( repealed 1989 ). Regulated planning consent for building power stations. 1919 Williamson Report and Birchenough Report leads to the Electricity ( Supply ) Act 1919 ( repealed 1989 ). Established Electricity Commission and appointed Electricity Commissioners 1922 The Electricity ( Supply ) Act 1922 ( repealed 1989 ) 1926 Weir Report leads to the Electricity ( Supply ) Act 1926 ( repealed 1989 ) -- created Central Electricity Board and the National Grid operating at 132 kV ( 50 Hz ) 1933 The 132 kV National Grid started operating as interconnected set of regional grids. 1936 The Electricity Supply ( Meters ) Act 1936 ( repealed 1989 ) 1938 The 132 kV National Grid became integrated. 1943 The Hydro - Electric Development ( Scotland ) Act 1943 ( repealed 1989 ) 1947 The Electricity Act 1947 ( repealed 1989 ). It merged 625 electricity companies to be vested in twelve area electricity boards and the generation and 132 kV National Grid were vested with the British Electricity Authority. 1954 The Electricity Reorganisation ( Scotland ) Act 1954 ( repealed 1989 ) 1955 British Electricity Authority becomes the Central Electricity Authority. The Scottish area boards are merged into South of Scotland Electricity Board and the North of Scotland Hydro - Electric Board. 1957 The Electricity Act 1957 ( repealed 1989 ). The Central Electricity Authority was dissolved and replaced by Central Electricity Generating Board and the Electricity Council. 1958 The new chairman of the Central Electricity Generating Board Christopher Hinton, Baron Hinton of Bankside begins the procurement of the new 2000 MW power stations and 400kV grid system 1961 The Electricity ( Amendment ) Act 1961 ( repealed 1989 ) 1963 The Electricity and Gas Act 1963 ( repealed 1989 ) 1965 Introduction of the first phase of the 400kV Supergrid from West Burton power stations, Nottinghamshire to Sundon in Bedfordshire 1968 The Gas and Electricity Act 1968 ( repealed 1989 ) 1969 The first of the new 2000 MW Generating Units are officially opened by the Ministry of Power ( United Kingdom ) Roy Mason at West Burton power stations 1972 The Electricity Act 1972 ( repealed 1989 ) 1978 Economy 7 introduced. 1979 The Electricity ( Scotland ) Act 1979 ( repealed 1989 ) The Electricity Act 1989 provides for the privatisation of the electricity industry in Great Britain Beginning of the privatization of the Central Electricity Generating Board. The assets of the CEGB are broken up into three new companies : Powergen, National Power and National Grid Company. Later, the nuclear component within National Power was removed and vested in another state - owned company called Nuclear Electric. 1991 Scottish industry privatised Electricity supply in Northern Ireland privatised. Premier Power formed. Supply industry in Northern Ireland privatised. 1995 Major assets of Nuclear Electric and Scottish Nuclear were merged the UK 's eight most advanced nuclear plants, forming a new private company, British Energy. 2000 The Utilities Act 2000 placed responsibility on generators to allow for connecting distributed energy sources to grid. The Central Electricity Generating Board ( Dissolution ) Order 2001. CEGB formally wound up. 2007 From 1 November Northern Ireland generators must sell their electricity into the Single Electricity Market, an all - island market with the Republic of Ireland from which suppliers purchase electricity at a single market rate. 2009 After becoming the UK 's largest electricity generation company, British Energy is bought by Électricité de France ( EDF ), a stated owned company. See also Energy policy of the United Kingdom Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom Energy switching services in the UK References Jump up ^ Page 41 `` Electricity Supply in the UK : A chronology '' The Electricity Council, 1987, ISBN 0 - 85188 - 105 - X Jump up ^ https://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/24/business/worldbusiness/24iht-edf.1.16429314.html Duncan, Ben ( 1996 ). `` Public Service Obligations in a Competitive Electricity Market '' ( Microsoft Word document ). Eyles, William E. `` Electricity in Bath 1890 -- 1974 ''. South Western Electricity Historical Society. Archived from the original on 2007 - 03 - 12. -- explains the 1882 Act Hannah, Leslie ( 1979 ). Electricity Before Nationalisation, A Study in the Development of the Electricity Supply Industry in Britain to 1948. London & Basingstoke : Macmillan Publishers for the Electricity Council. ISBN 0 - 8018 - 2145 - 2. `` Electricity Act 1989 ''. National Archives. `` UK Electricity Networks '' ( pdf ). Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology. 2001. -- `` Postnote '' 163 Energy in the United Kingdom Companies Coal Anglo American Asia Energy BHP ENRC Glencore Rio Tinto UK Coal Oil and gas Integrated BP Royal Dutch Shell Exploration and production Afren BHP Cairn Energy Centrica Dana Petroleum Desire Petroleum Emerald Energy EnQuest Essar Energy Hardy Oil and Gas JKX Oil & Gas Melrose Resources Ophir Energy Perenco Premier Oil Regal Petroleum Rockhopper Exploration SOCO International Star Energy Tullow Oil Supply Greenergy Murco Petroleum Support Abbot Group AMEC Ensco Expro Hunting Petrofac Qserv Score Group Weir Group WesternGeco Wood Group Utilities Generation and supply Integrated Centrica EDF Energy E. ON UK RWE npower Scottish Power SSE Generation Drax Group Falck Renewables Horizon Nuclear Power International Power Vattenfall United Kingdom Vedanta Resources Supply The Co-operative Energy Ecotricity ESB International Extra Energy Firmus Energy First Utility Good Energy Green Energy LoCO2 Energy Opus Energy Ovo Energy Phoenix Natural Gas Telecom Plus Distribution Electricity Electricity North West Northern Powergrid SP Energy Networks SSE Power Distribution UK Power Networks Western Power Distribution Gas Firmus Energy National Grid Northern Gas Networks Phoenix Natural Gas SGN Wales & West Utilities Transmission Electricity National Grid Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission SP Energy Networks Gas National Grid Other Aggreko APX Group Aquamarine Power Ecogen EnServe Geothermal Engineering Hi - Gen Power Mark Group Wavegen Companies with headquarters and / or registered office in the UK but no applicable energy operations within the country shown in italics Ultimate parent company is not UK - based Integrated in the United States, no generation or supply activities in the UK Energy sources Coal Coal Authority Coal - fired power stations Coal mines Coal mining regions Confederation of UK Coal Producers Greenhouse gas emissions History Miners ' strike National Coal Board Open - pit coal mining Electricity Association of Electricity Producers BritNed East -- West Interconnector Energy switching services Economy 7 Economy 10 Electricity billing Green electricity Grid Trade Master Agreement HVDC Cross-Channel HVDC Moyle HVDC Norway -- UK Isle of Man to England Interconnector National Grid Control Reserve Service New Electricity Trading Arrangements Power stations Timeline of the electricity supply industry Nuclear Advanced gas - cooled reactor Franco -- British Nuclear Forum Magnox National Nuclear Laboratory Nuclear Decommissioning Authority Nuclear Liabilities Fund Nuclear power stations Office for Nuclear Regulation Sellafield United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority Oil and gas BBL Pipeline Dash for Gas Forties pipeline system Fuel protests Gas infrastructure Greenhouse gas emissions Hydrocarbon oil duty Oil and Gas Authority National Transmission System Natural gas fields Natural gas - fired power stations North Sea oil Oil & Gas UK Oil fields Oil - fired power stations Oil infrastructure Oil refineries Petroleum revenue tax Renewables Biofuels Biodiesel Biofuel power stations National Non-Food Crops Centre Renewable Fuels Agency Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation Geothermal Geothermal power stations Hydroelectricity Hydroelectric power stations Severn Barrage Wave farms Solar power Wind power List of offshore wind farms List of onshore wind farms North Sea Offshore Grid Wind power in Scotland Government and regulation Organisations Carbon Trust Cenex Committee on Climate Change Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Department of Energy and Climate Change Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Energy Saving Trust Environment Agency Office of Gas and Electricity Markets Legislation and initiatives Carbon Emission Reduction Target Climate Change Act 2008 Climate Change Agreement Climate Change Levy Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Act 2006 CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme Display Energy Certificate Energy Act 2013 Energy Performance Certificate Fossil Fuel Levy Low Carbon Building Programme National Industrial Symbiosis Programme Non-Fossil Fuel Obligation Planning Act 2008 Renewable Heat Incentive Renewables Obligation United Kingdom Climate Change Programme Non-governmental organisations Charities and pressure groups Ashden Award BioRegional Campaign against Climate Change Centre for Alternative Technology National Energy Action Stop Climate Chaos Tyndall Centre Industry bodies Combined Heat and Power Association Energy Institute Energy Networks Association Energy Retail Association Green Power Forum RenewableUK Utilities Intermediaries Association Research Centre for Renewable Energy Systems Technology Energy Technologies Institute Hadley Centre for Climate Prediction and Research NaREC Oil Depletion Analysis Centre Sunbury Research Centre UK Energy Research Centre Energy conservation Association for the Conservation of Energy British Energy Efficiency Federation Close the Door campaign Code for Sustainable Homes Double Glazing & Conservatory Ombudsman Scheme EcoHomes Energy efficiency in British housing Energy Saving Trust Energy Saving Trust Recommended Greenhouse gas emissions HTB National Home Energy Rating Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Timeline_of_the_UK_electricity_supply_industry&oldid=800983625 '' Categories : Electric power in the United Kingdom British history timelines Hidden categories : All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from December 2011 Wikipedia articles needing clarification from December 2011 Talk About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 16 September 2017, at 23 : 30. 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Question: when was electricity first used in the uk
Answer: 1882