The Silahtarağa Power Station ( tr, Silahtarağa Elektrik Santralı) was a coal-fired generating station located in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. The

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

's first power plant, it was in use from 1914 to 1983. The site has since been converted into a university

campus A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-like se ...

for the

Istanbul Bilgi University Istanbul Bilgi University ( tr, İstanbul Bilgi Üniversitesi), officially established in 1996, is a private university located in Istanbul, Turkey. The university has 4 campuses centrally-located in Istanbul namely SantralIstanbul, Kuştepe, Do ...

and houses two museums and several facilities. It was refurbished and renamed

SantralIstanbul The SantralIstanbul ( tr, Santralİstanbul), opened in 2007, is an arts and cultural complex located at the upper end of Golden Horn in the Eyüp district of Istanbul, Turkey. The center, consisting of an energy museum, an amphitheater, concer ...

in 2007.

History

The power plant was designed as the first in the Ottoman Empire apart from a small hydroelectric power station built in 1902 outside Tarsus in

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

. The

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

based

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

- Hungarian Gas and Electric Company, Ganz, was contracted to build the power station. In 1910 the firm had established the Ottoman Electric Company in cooperation with two Belgian banks: the Banque de Bruxelles and the Banque Generale de Credit Hangrois. The company obtained an imperial concession lasting 50 years, and built its first station a coal-fired plant in the Silahtarağa neighbourhood,

Eyüp Eyüp () or Eyüpsultan is a district of the city of Istanbul, Turkey. The district extends from the Golden Horn all the way to the shore of the Black Sea. Eyüp is also the name of a prominent neighborhood and former village in the district, lo ...

at the upper end of Golden Horn. The power plant started service on the February 11, 1914 it supplied power initially to the tram network and shortly after to the sultan's palace. Before long electrical power was prevalent in the city's more prosperous districts as well. The foreign-owned company was nationalized in 1937 and turned over on July 1, 1938 to the Municipality of Istanbul. From then on it was managed by the 'Electricity, Tunnel and Tram Company of Istanbul' ( IETT). Silahtarağa power station was the sole electricity producer in

until the 1950s. In 1952, the station was linked to the newly created Turkish national grid. From 1962 it was operated by

Etibank Etibank A.Ş is a defunct Turkish bank. Founded in 1935 as a state bank focussed on financing the electricity sector, it launched commercial banking activities in 1955. The commercial banking division was separated out in 1993 (from what would bec ...

and in 1970 control was passed to the

Turkish Electric Institution Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

(TEK). The Silahtarağa power station initially had three 6 MW generators. This capacity was later increased to 80 MW. On the March 13, 1983, Silahtarağa power station was shut down because it was no longer economic to operate. The plant was left largely derelict for the next 20 years . In 1991, the plant was listed as a 'cultural and natural object of Istanbul' giving it special protection.

Redevelopment project

In 2002, a redevelopment plan was drawn up by

Oğuz Özerden Oghuz or Oğuz may refer to: *an early Turkic word for "tribe", see Oghuz (tribe) * Oghuz languages, southwestern branch of the Turkic language family * Oghuz Turks, the Turkic groups speaking Oghuz languages * Oghuz Khan, a legendary and semi-myth ...

, a young businessman and the founder of

. The project aimed to convert the former plant into a university campus. Under this plan the former station buildings would be used to house two new museums. One a gallery dedicated to modern art, the other an energy museum. It was this blueprint which received official backing. An alternative project was submitted by the Istanbul branch of the

Chamber of Electrical Engineers Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations *Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics *Debate chamber, the space or room that houses deliber ...

in cooperation with the Istanbul Technical University, Bilgi University's project was approved by the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, and was realized in three years with the financial support of some leading Turkish companies.Newspaper ''Radikal'' July 21, 2007
The complex was renamed SantralIstanbul after the

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

word "Santral" meaning power station. The complex was officially opened on September 8, 2007. Alongside the art gallery and energy museum, the university has created: a public library, amphitheatre several smaller facilities for art, cultural events and educational institutions.

The Energy Museum at Santralİstanbul

The remaining generating equipment is preserved as part of the display at Santralİstanbul energy museum. It was integrated into the design by architect Han Tümertekin. Situated in the turbine hall with three generator groups, the museum is a collection of the

steam turbine A steam turbine is a machine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work on a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Charles Parsons in 1884. Fabrication of a modern steam turbin ...

s, the

electrical generator In electricity generation, a generator is a device that converts motive power (mechanical energy) or fuel-based power (chemical energy) into electric power for use in an external circuit. Sources of mechanical energy include steam turbines, gas ...

s and the equipment of the former Silahtarağa power plant, on display in almost original conditions. Tours are self-guided. Here, modern glass

escalator An escalator is a moving staircase which carries people between floors of a building or structure. It consists of a motor-driven chain of individually linked steps on a track which cycle on a pair of tracks which keep the step tread horizo ...

s replaced the former coal conveyors between the floors. In order to have a good overview of the machinery in the huge hall, a

podium A podium (plural podiums or podia) is a platform used to raise something to a short distance above its surroundings. It derives from the Greek ''πόδι'' (foot). In architecture a building can rest on a large podium. Podiums can also be used ...

is hanged at 12 m height, which leads the visitors to the control room. After the control room, the tour route returns to the entrance by way of the turbine hall floor. The podium has a rough wooden floor and glass sides framed in steel. The control room is preserved nearly in its original form, and was only cleaned. The lower level of the technical museum has also moving exhibits, where the visitors are encouraged to push buttons and work levers for interactive learning. Original relay and control instrumentation and wiring is visible. There are many examples from dozens of former and existing manufacturers. Most impressive is the large scale of equipment which was once necessary to generate only a few dozen Megawatts.

Admission and transport

The museum is open to public from 10.00 to 22.00 hours everyday except Mondays. Admission is free of charge. Parking and pedestrian access is from the south, immediately after the Kağıthane bridge. Pedestrian access is also possible from the north, adjacent to Fil Köprusü (Alibey elephant bridge), which permits foot and bike access from Eyüp and the west side of the Haliç. A shuttle bus service free of charge is provided for the visitors departing from

Atatürk Cultural Center The Atatürk Cultural Center ( ), commonly called the AKM, is a concert hall, theatre and cultural centre running along the eastern side of Taksim Square in Beyoğlu, Istanbul. In 2021, it reopened to the public as a state-of-the-art cultural com ...

in Taksim every half an hour. İETT does operate several bus lines in the immediate vicinity. Address:
Eski Silahtarağa Elektrik Santrali (Former Silahtarağa Power Station)
Silahtar Mah. Kazım Karabekir Cad. 1
Eyüp, Istanbul

Images

File:SantralIstanbul turbine hall foto3.jpg, Turbine Hall File:SantralIstanbul turbine hall foto1.jpg, Turbine Hall File:SantralIstanbul turbine hall foto2.jpg, Turbine Hall File:SantralIstanbul control room foto2.jpg, Control Room File:SantralIstanbul control room foto1.jpg, Control Room File:SantralIstanbul control room foto3.jpg, Control Room File:SantralIstanbul instruments.jpg, Frequency Synchronization Instrumentation File:SantralIstanbul exterior.jpg, Santralİstanbul exterior view, looking from the south

References

External links

SantralIstanbul official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Silahtaraga Power Station Buildings and structures in Istanbul Coal-fired power stations in Turkey Energy infrastructure completed in 1914 1914 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Redevelopment projects in Istanbul Technology museums in Turkey Museums in Istanbul Golden Horn Istanbul Bilgi University