Submarine 'power stations' Helping in coal crisis. Submarines of the home fleet have been ordered by radio to Devonport, Portsmouth and Sheerness to act as floating generating stations for their naval dockyard is to help relieve the coal shortage. 15 have been ordered to Portsmouth, 9 to Devonport and two to Sheerness, and more likely to follow. The submarines, burning diesel oil, are each capable of a daily output of 1000 kW, and coal consumption of mainland generating stations is expected to be cut by 2000 tons weekly. This method of providing current by submarines to LAN installations is not new. The city of Naples was providing current by British submarines during the war. Picture shows, naval personnel, connecting cables from the shore installations to the submarine HMS Tiptoe at Sheerness today to supply current to the naval dockyard. 9 January 1947