El proceso de electrificación de las minas de mercurio de Almadén

Abstract

At the beginning of the 20th century, the Almadén mercury

mines were administered by the Ministry of Finance. The

mines were in such a deplorable situation that they did not

yield the expected economic returns for the country, so much

so that their lease or even their sale came to be considered.

Finally, the form of administration was changed and the so

called Administrative Council of the Almadén Mines was put

in charge. As a necessary and urgent measure to undertake

the required reforms of the mines that would lead to their

modernization and, consequently, a greater economic yield,

the need to provide the mines with electricity supply was

considered.

This process of electrification and modernization of the

Almadén mines, which was intended to be undertaken within

a few months, was delayed for several years, among other

reasons, because it was a particularly convulsive period in

terms of workers’ conflicts, as well as coinciding with the

period just after the end of the First World War, with the

supply problems that this entailed.

This article discusses the different options that were

considered to provide electrical power for the mining facility

and sets out the solutions that were finally adopted. This was

an arduous process, as attested to by the numerous historical

documents consulted, the large number of estimates

considered and the correspondence with various suppliers of

electrical equipment.