From the history of the electrification of Polish cities
The Municipal Power Plant in Radom

by Tomasz Staniszewski (excerpts from a monograph)

The 19th century, often called the "century of steam and electricity," brought an unprecedented technological development, an increase in innovation, which subsequently enabled the creation of new products. The electrical and electrotechnical industry took a special place in the industrial revolution. The inventions of Faraday, Edison, Siemens, Dobrowolski, Bell, and many others reached Polish lands with a significant delay, but gradually found application in industry, as well as in lighting cities and towns. In the individual partitions, the processes of electrification proceeded in different ways. Undoubtedly, the policy of the partitioning states did not favor the economic development of our country, and the situation was complicated by the general economic backwardness, remnants of the feudal system, and a centralized government administration that restricted all economic freedom and property. A permanent lack of domestic capital was also a factor delaying economic development. The dominance of foreign capital was indisputable, and its character, in conditions of high risk, often had a speculative dimension. Nevertheless, the end of the 19th century brought a number of significant changes to the Prussian, Austrian, and Russian partitions, which in the near future were to form the basis for the economic foundations of the Polish state, which was reviving after years of captivity.

The development of the electrical and electrotechnical industry required enormous capital. Since the construction of railways, there had been no more capital-intensive investments in public infrastructure. Even the most industrialized countries such as Germany, France, Switzerland, and Belgium had to seek ways to combine these new technologies with capital in order to develop and popularize them. Various forms of capitalist organization and financing of enterprises, such as commercial companies (including those with bank participation), holding companies, cartels, trusts, and syndicates, served this purpose.

Initially, the largest and wealthiest industrial centers and administrative hubs had the greatest opportunities for development. In the Polish territories occupied by the partitioning powers, electricity appeared in the last quarter of the 19th century. The first installations were implemented in industry, with mines and smelters being the pioneers of electricity applications. In 1875, the first generator was launched in the "Czeladź" mine (Dąbrowa Basin, Russian Partition). Three years later, in the Prussian Partition, a 1.3 kW generator powered arc lamps at the Chorzów railway station. In 1879, a power plant was established at the Handtke factory in Warsaw. These applications were limited to generating power for the exclusive use of a given company or institution. A breakthrough occurred only with the introduction of alternating, three-phase current, which enabled long-distance transmission, eventually over significant distances. In the Kingdom of Poland, the first successful attempt at transmitting electricity took place in Warsaw in 1896, over a distance of 1200 meters. In small and medium-sized cities, primarily those with "illumination" power plants, direct current was generated due to its ability to be stored in batteries. In contrast, three-phase alternating current was used in cities with more extensive networks, where power plants were located far from the city, or where there was a significant demand for power for industrial machinery and equipment. In the Prussian and Austrian Partitions (Galicia), the first municipal power plants were established in 1893 (Wrocław, Bielsko, Lviv) and 1894 (Cracow, Nowy Targ).

The first cities in the Kingdom of Poland to launch power plants were Radom (1901), Warsaw (1903), and Łódź (1907). In all of these cases, German and Belgian capital played a decisive role, establishing and operating the first municipal power plants throughout the Russian Empire under the guise of Russian joint-stock companies.

The first municipal power plant in the Kingdom of Poland was established in Radom, 18 years after the first municipal power plant in Berlin was launched in 1883. Such a significant time gap clearly demonstrates how far behind the territories of the Russian Partition were in adopting the latest scientific and technological advancements of the second half of the 19th century. [...]