Radom's authorities began their efforts to build a municipal power plant in the early 1890s. The city developed rapidly, with industry as the most important factor in shaping the city. Radom, then under Russian rule, was an important administrative center, the capital of the Radom Governorate, home to numerous civilian and military institutions, and a strong economic hub with developed tanning, food, ceramics, and metal industries. It was also a major railway hub, connecting the Dąbrowa Basin, the Old Polish Industrial Region, and Łódź. Radom's period of economic and financial prosperity fostered investments in modern infrastructure, which the authorities viewed as a pro-development factor, increasing the city's economic attractiveness and facilitating the daily lives of its residents. Building the power plant was a costly but highly profitable undertaking, guaranteeing a rapid rate of return. This led to numerous private companies fiercely competing for concessions to build and operate the power plant.
As early as 1896, during the term of office of Mayor Roman Cennere, Radom's authorities adopted an electric lighting project. On March 4, 1897, during the term of office of Mayor Konstanty Zaremba, a preliminary agreement was signed between Radom's authorities and the Russian Electric Joint-Stock Company UNION. According to the agreement, the city was to receive the technical design of the installation within three months, and the power plant was to be commissioned within the 12-month construction period following the approval of the technical design by the provincial authorities. The concession period was 38 years, while the period after which the city acquired the right to purchase the power plant was set at 10 years.
On December 3, 1899, the Ministry of Internal Affairs granted the Warsaw Governor-General permission to install electric lighting in Radom. Already on April 14, 1900, a corresponding agreement was signed between the city hall and the UNION Society. The Society agreed to install, at its own expense and risk, a central power plant for the exploitation of electricity within the city limits for lighting and all other forms of electricity use except telephones, telegraphs, and trams. The Society was to receive an annual fee of 6,000 rubles from the city. For residential lighting, the rate was to be 40 kopecks per kWh, and for industrial plants, 18 kopecks. The concession agreement also provided significant revenue for the city. The total cost of the investment was estimated at 150,000 rubles. A stately neo-Gothic building of red brick was erected for the power plant. All construction work was performed by Edward Kosiński's Construction Office in Radom.
The power plant was launched on March 15, 1901, at 8 p.m. at what was then 16 Długa Street, with the participation of provincial and city authorities and city citizens. Fifty-eight arc lamps were then lit, spaced 44 meters apart on the streets. The first installation of the central station included, among other things, two locomobiles from the Heinrich Lanz factory in Mannheim, each with a power of 110 horsepower, and two six-pole dynamoelectric machines (DC generators) from the factory of the Russian Electrical Company UNION in Riga, generating a voltage of 550 V at a maximum current of 118 A, providing a power of 65 kW. The power plant also included a Plamche system battery, consisting of 262 cells, sufficient for 400 ampere-hours. In small and medium-sized towns (including Radom), so-called lighting, generating direct current, due to the ability to store energy in rechargeable batteries. Three-phase alternating current became widespread relatively late in cities with more extensive power grids and due to the demands of dynamically developing industry.
The Radom municipal power plant, whose first director was Witold Idźkowski, a mechanical engineer and graduate of the Riga Polytechnic University, was established 18 years after the first municipal power plant in Berlin was launched in 1883. This significant time span indicates that the lands of the Russian partition were lagging behind in implementing the latest technological advancements. The launch of the Radom power plant earlier than similar plants in Warsaw (1903) and Łódź (1907) indicates the city's high standing among the industrial centers of the Kingdom of Poland and demonstrates the considerable effectiveness of the then provincial and municipal authorities.
The power plant's owners changed hands between the outbreak of World War I. In 1909, the plant was sold by the Liquidation Commission of the UNION Society to the Radomskie Towarzystwo Elektryczne SA (Radom Electric Company), owned by the Berlin Power Company SA (Polish Power Enterprises Association). In turn, the Radomskie Towarzystwo Elektryczne SA (Radom Electric Company) was sold to the Belgian Tramways et Electricite en Russe SA (Tramways et Electricite en Russe), whose principal shareholder since 1911 had been the German holding company AEG. Robert Erhardt then became director, a position held by engineer Franciszek Bilek from 1913 to 1920.
The outbreak of World War I significantly hampered the power plant's operations. In June 1915, retreating Russians from Radom dismantled some of the machinery and transported it to Russia. This reduced the plant's output by approximately 60%.
After the end of World War I and Poland regained independence, the plant needed a thorough modernization to increase its production capacity. The new director, engineer Aleksander Chądzyński, appointed in 1920, oversaw the purchase of new, more efficient machinery and equipment, as well as the construction of the city's first 300 kVA transformer station within the municipal waterworks. The interwar period was a very successful one for the Radom power plant, as the growing demand for electric power from the dynamically developing local industry and the company's monopoly position in the local market guaranteed large profits, but also necessitated constant modernization of the plant.
In 1923, Radomskie Towarzystwo Elektryczne SA was acquired by the Belgian company Societe d'Entreprises Electriques en Pologne SA, known as ELECTROPOL. A year later, the power plant began producing alternating current.
During the interwar period, the plant employed approximately 70 workers. During this time, serious conflicts also arose between the power plant's management and the city, which in 1933 entered into a legal dispute with the plant, accusing it of imposing very high tariffs. The city's decisive actions led to lower electricity prices in Radom. In the final years before the outbreak of World War II, Radomskie Towarzystwo Elektryczne SA, a company with foreign capital, engaged in a predatory economy. The quality parameters of the energy produced were not met, resulting in voltage drops. Investments were discontinued, and the focus was on achieving the highest possible profits, which were then exported abroad.
During the occupation, in 1941, the municipal power plant, considered a strategically important facility, was placed under compulsory management by the German authorities. That same year, its long-time director, engineer Chądzyński, was arrested and subsequently deported to Auschwitz, where he was murdered. During the war, the plant's operations were redirected to meet the needs of the German occupiers. A wasteful economy was in place, leading to the flagrant exploitation of machinery and equipment.
In January 1945, immediately after the liberation of Radom by the Red Army, only one machine unit was operational at the power plant. Much of the equipment and machinery had previously been removed by the Nazi occupiers. The war effort did not destroy the building, only the distribution network suffered minor damage. Within two weeks of liberation, thanks to the efforts of the power plant crew, the plant was successfully restarted. Restoring electricity supply was crucial for restarting local industry, municipal services, and improving the living conditions of residents. In May of that year, the power plant was placed under administrative administration. On March 16, 1946, the concession agreement of April 14, 1900, formally expired. Also in 1946, the city authorities made legal efforts to take over the plant from the state-owned enterprise ZEORK, successfully concluding in 1948. In 1952, management of the municipal power plant was taken over by the state-owned enterprise Zakład Zbytu Energii w Radomiu. Due to outdated technology and a low generation capacity relative to demand, electricity generation at the Radom power plant ceased in 1956. That same year, the city's direct current grid was decommissioned. In 1963, a municipal heating plant was built in the power plant building, supplying heat to the nearby municipal hospital.
From 1966, the building was managed by the municipal Heat and Power Company (WPEC), which was renamed the provincial WPEC in 1975, and then, in January 1999, by Radomskie Przedsiębiorstwo Energetyki Cieplnej Radpec. The heating plant ceased operations in 1998. Radpec moved its offices to the front of the building and the annex.
By the late 1990s, the building housed offices of various city agencies and institutions. The former heat exchanger hall was converted into a conference and banquet hall, first used by the City Hall, then by a private tenant. Radpec occupied the first floor, which housed the Thermal Power Dispatch Center and the Emergency Heating Service.
In 2003, Andrzej Wajda, an honorary citizen of Radom, proposed that the city build an exhibition pavilion in the Old Garden to house the growing collection of contemporary art gathered by the local branch of the Jacek Malczewski Museum – Museum of Contemporary Art. The renowned director and his wife donated over 70 works to the Radom institution's collection. The director's idea was supported by the City Council's Culture Committee. City authorities declared their intention to donate land for the construction of a new building. The Marshal of the Mazovian Voivodeship, representing the organizer of the Radom Museum, also expressed interest in the matter. The Municipal Urban Planning Studio in Radom prepared 10 proposals for the future building's location. However, they were awaiting the opinion of Andrzej Wajda, the project's promoter and advocate.
In January 2004, the local newspaper "Gazeta Wyborcza" presented the idea of Radom resident Kaja Koziarska to adapt the building of an old power plant to serve as a new art center. The project for adapting the building was the subject of her diploma thesis, defended at the Faculty of Interior Design at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. The idea of adapting the historic building soon gained many enthusiasts, and the idea itself was also supported by Andrzej Wajda. The advantages of this solution were emphasized: its location in the city center and its sufficient capacity, as well as the potential for revitalization of the building, inextricably linked to the history of the city's industrialization. In early June 2004, representatives of the city and Mazovia governments agreed to house the Centre for Modern Art in the old power plant. The city agreed to hand over the building to the provincial assembly, which would then assist in financing the construction. It was assumed that the future investment should be financed from external sources, primarily European Union funds. It wasn't until May 24, 2005, that the Municipality of Radom transferred the building and plot of land free of charge to the Masovian Voivodeship. Previously, the city authorities unsuccessfully negotiated for the regional assembly to either transfer another property to the city in exchange for the property or invest in the construction of a multiplex cinema. Marshal Adam Struzik declared that the provincial government would allocate PLN 10 million for the construction and apply for funding from European Union funds and the Norwegian Financial Mechanism. In September, Agata Morgan became the Masovian Voivodeship's representative for the establishment of a Centre for Contemporary Art in Radom. She had three years to complete this task. At the same time, the Masovian Voivodeship's Multiannual Investment Plan also included PLN 11 million for the creation of a Centre for Contemporary Art in the former power plant building. The cost of the reconstruction and adaptation was estimated at approximately PLN 40 million.
On December 19, 2005, the Masovian Voivodeship Assembly passed a resolution establishing a new cultural institution – the Masovian Centre for Contemporary Art Elektrownia in Radom.
On March 4, 2006, the first exhibition opened in the power plant building, commemorating the 80th birthday (which fell on March 6th) of Andrzej Wajda, Honorary Citizen of Radom and advocate for the center's construction. It featured photographs of works donated to the Museum of Contemporary Art by the director. That same year, the institution launched its website and preparations began for an architectural competition for the design of the old power plant building's conversion into an arts center.
The competition brief was prepared by Dr. Marek Pabich, DSc, Eng., Arch., from the Lodz University of Technology. The two-stage competition was announced on October 9th. Participants in the first stage were tasked with developing a concept for the development of the former power plant building and the surrounding area. The deadline for submissions was December 12th. Those selected by the jury for the second stage were tasked with detailing the design and developing a feasibility study. The results of the second stage of the competition were scheduled for February 28th, 2007. The investment cost could not exceed PLN 9.8 million.
The competition was overseen by a group of judges. Among them were Roman Wieszczek, a Łódź architect and member of the National Council of Architects, who chaired the judging panel; Marek Pabich, head of the Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Łódź; Robert Kornatka, director of the Faculty of Architecture at the Radom City Hall; and Mieczysław Szewczuk, head of the Museum of Contemporary Art. The judges will also be supported by an Honorary Committee of Advisors, including film director Andrzej Wajda, the architect of the Centre for Contemporary Art in Radom, and Deputy Minister of Culture Krzysztof Olendzki.
Fifteen entries were submitted, of which one was rejected for formal reasons. The jury selected four from the remaining fourteen. From these, the best design was to be chosen, adapting the building to serve as a Centre for Contemporary Art. The competition results were announced on February 23, 2007. The winning design was created by a Warsaw team consisting of Damian Cyryl Kotwicki, Daniel Cwalina, Marcin Bondaruk, Darek Kwiatkowski, Hubert Trammer, Lech Rowiński, and engineer Arkadiusz Ciernik, led by architect Andrzej Kikowski. On April 20, a contract was signed with Andrzej Kikowski's Design Services Office for the architectural design of the future power plant. The institution soon prepared an exhibition of the competition designs, which was later transferred to the Zachęta National Gallery of Art in Warsaw.
In mid-2007, there were changes in the directorship of the Power Plant. Acting director Agata Morgan was dismissed. A competition was announced, which was won by Zbigniew Belowski. In December 2007, the Power Plant organized the first Koksownik Winter Film Festival and participated in organizing the first edition of the Jerzy Busza Art Festival.
In March 2008, a specialized company began dismantling old equipment and post-industrial installations in the power plant building. Nearly 120 tons of various metal structures were removed. Efforts were also made to purchase a private plot of land adjacent to the building so that construction work could begin.
On August 1st at 5:00 PM (the anniversary of the outbreak of the Warsaw Uprising), the Mazovian Artists' Festival, titled "Uprising of Art," began and lasted until October 3rd (the anniversary of the Uprising's fall). Nearly 300 artists from across Poland participated. The festival included several exhibitions, more than a dozen performances and happenings (including in public spaces), author meetings, concerts, and film screenings.
In December, director Zbigniew Belowski resigned from his position. Deputy director Włodzimierz Pujanek was appointed acting director, while Zbigniew Belowski took over as deputy director for artistic affairs.
In April 2009, the power plant applied for a building permit. The total cost of the investment was then estimated at PLN 30-35 million. In May, an application for PLN 39 million from the Infrastructure and Environment Operational Programme was submitted. Unfortunately, the institution did not receive the grant. A tender for the detailed design was also announced, with a deadline of the end of November of that year. However, PLN 10 million was guaranteed in the 2010 Masovian budget for the expansion of the Masovian Centre for Contemporary Art, which allowed for the construction to be announced. The most significant project – the expansion of the power plant – was budgeted as "Changing the use of the CHP building to the Masovian Centre for Contemporary Art Elektrownia in Radom." This is only a portion of the total amount needed for the power plant's modernization, estimated at nearly PLN 40 million. The amount was divided into four installments. In 2010 – 10 million, in 2011 – 10 million, in 2012 – 14 million 800 thousand PLN, and in 2013 – 5 million PLN.
On April 1, 2010, an agreement was signed with the Marshal's Office to finance the investment. Due to planned construction work, in mid-2010 the power plant began moving to a temporary location, also in a former industrial timber plant building at 5 Domagalski Street, where it continued its operations.
On October 14, 2010, the tender for the reconstruction of the old power plant building was announced. Rosabud won the tender (bidding PLN 17.539 million). The investment will be financed entirely from the budget of the Masovian Voivodeship. The Masovian Voivodeship has guaranteed a total of PLN 25 million for this purpose. The remaining amount will be allocated to equipping the newly established Center. According to the plan, the renovated building will house exhibition halls, administrative offices, storage facilities for collections, and conservation workshops. Among other things, the art collection from the Museum of Contemporary Art will be housed here. A new building, connected to the old one, will be constructed on the square behind the power plant, housing exhibition halls, a café, and a 120-seat cinema. The project also includes the construction of a parking lot, an observation deck, and appropriate landscaping around the new center. Completion of the project is scheduled for the end of 2012.
On January 7, 2011, a ceremony of reading, signing and laying the foundation act took place at the construction site, with the participation of representatives of the voivodeship and city authorities.
Construction, however, was delayed due to the need for additional, time-consuming work. During the renovation, various obstacles were encountered that were not captured in the inventory. These included the discovery of old sewers beneath the building, and reinforcement of the foundations and parts of the walls that were in danger of collapse. The project was completed in the spring of 2014, and the power plant began another move, this time to its final location. Interior design and furnishing began, including the office, exhibition, and warehouse spaces.
On November 6th, the Power Plant's inauguration ceremony took place in the renovated building, combined with the opening of the Specimen exhibition, showcasing selected works from the collections of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Radom and the Center's own collection. On November 12th, Andrzej Wajda and his wife, Krystyna Zachwatowicz, visited the exhibition.
On May 22, 2015, an agreement was signed to co-finance the project "Changing the use of the former CHP plant to the Mazovian Centre for Contemporary Art, Radom Power Plant," from the indicative list of individual key projects co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund under Project VI. "Using natural and cultural assets for the development of tourism and recreation," Measure 6.1 "Culture," of the Regional Operational Program for the Mazovian Voivodeship 2007–2013. The total project value is PLN 24,866,757, with a subsidy amount of PLN 15,135,198. The agreement was signed by Leszek Ruszczyk, Deputy Marshal of the Mazovian Voivodeship, and Włodzimierz Pujanek, Director of the Power Plant.
On November 9, 2015, the inaugural screening took place at the Elektrownia cinema, which seats 120. The entire investment, including equipment, cost PLN 1.6 million. Funding for this purpose came from an EU grant. The Elektrownia cinema boasts high-quality 4K resolution. It is the only cinema in Poland with a Meyer Sound sound system, and the auditorium is a near-replica of a private arthouse cinema near Paris owned by George Lucas, creator of "Star Wars." On January 12, 2017, the cinema was named after Andrzej Wajda.
Prepared on the basis of the book by Tomasz Staniszewski, Municipal Power Plant in Radom 1901–1956, Radom 2017 and the Power Plant’s own documentation.