Lamma Island Power Station – reasons for choice of location

During the 1970’s Hong Kong went through a boom of rapid growth and it quickly became apparent that more power would be needed in order to sustain the extra demand and development of the City. The Ap Lei Chau power station would need to be substantially increased in size and require larger supply vessels to supply the extra fuel needed, however the proximity of Magazine Island and Lung Sha Pai to the immediate West of Ap Lei Chau meant the navigation of larger vessels would be precarious at best (see figure 1).

To add to that the Lamma Channel had now become one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world. A new location that would allow for ease of access and future expansion of the power station needed to be found. Following a comprehensive environmental impact assessment (EIA) study and consultation with the Environmental Protection Department at the project inception stage the 50 hectare site at Po Lo Tsui was selected for the Lamma Island Power Station.

Lamma Island lying less that two kilometers South West of Hong Kong Island has natural deep waters to the North, East and South and has a deep water channel that is relatively traffic free running up the Western flank (see figure 2). The later would prove ideal for larger supply vessels to navigate and deliver the necessary fuels required safely, (now in operation vessels invariably arrive and depart from and to the South).

Work began on the new coal fired Lamma Island Power Station in the late 1970’s, half of the Kam Lo Hom hillside was leveled into the sea to the South and this along with further reclamation formed the 50 hectare site for the power station. Further reclamation could be conducted at a later date for any expansion needs. The remainder of the Kam Lo Hom hillside acts as a visual and sound barrier for the village of Yung Shue Wan from the power station.

The Lamma Power Station is currently being converted to 100% gas fueled.

This article was first posted on 31st March 2016.

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