The two stations were built alongside each other on a riverside site about 5 mi (8.0 km) downstream of Newcastle upon Tyne.

The stations were a major factor in increasing the productivity of the neighbouring shipyards, which became some of the biggest in the world, as well as benefiting the nearby engineering works and coal mines by providing them with a cheap and reliable source of electricity.

Once again, as demand grew, they ran out of space for further development at this site and so built another new generating station in the Carville area of Wallsend.

The idea attracted considerable interest from power supply engineers from around the world, leading to it becoming common practice amongst all the large electricity authorities in England.

This layout allowed for long lengths of steam-piping to be avoided, and for each battery of boilers to be arranged opposite the generating set which it feeds in the turbine hall.

[3] Steam was provided by ten 1,000 HP Babcock & Wilcox marine type boilers and two Green's economizers.

The station generated three-phase alternating current of 6 kV, which was distributed through NESCo's high voltage underground network.

From the sidings the coal was carried over a steel trestle by an electric locomotive, before being unloaded directly into bunkers in the boiler house.

The station was now equipped to supply power to over 60 square miles (160 km2); from Shilbottle in Northumberland, right down to Malton in North Yorkshire.

Carville had an economy of only 10.05 lb of steam consumed per kilowatt hour generated when all five units were operating at full load.