Construction is set to start next year on a new energy-from-waste and biomass plant in West Yorkshire after it was given the green light today (October 31) by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC).
The 108 MW multi-fuel plant is to be developed by Scottish and Southern Energy Generation Ltd (SSE) next to its existing coal-fired power station in Ferrybridge, near Wakefield, with SSE providing an initial investment of 250 million.
The facility will use a range of feedstock, including biomass, waste-derived fuels and waste wood to generate heat and electricity.
Some of the fuel for the plant is expected to come from a contract with the Barnsley, Doncaster and Rotherham Waste Partnership. SSE is working with Shanks in a consortium known as 3SE which was named in April 2011 as the preferred bidder for the partnerships 25-year 750 million PFI contract (see letsrecycle.com story).
The deal will see Shanks develop a mechanical biological treatment (MBT) facility in Manvers in Rotherham which will pre-treat residual waste before sending it to the SSE plant as fuel.
An SSE spokeswoman told letsrecycle.com that the source of the rest of the waste fuel had not been decided as yet as the contracts were not yet in place.
The development is expected to create approximately 100 permanent jobs and around 300 temporary ones during construction.
Announcing approval for the plant alongside another facility in Yorkshire, minister of state for energy Charles Hendry, said: These new plants in Yorkshire are a fantastic example of new power stations bringing new jobs. These decisions are a further example of our determination to clear a back-log of planning applications, to stimulate growth and enhance our energy security.
Contribution
SSEs director of thermal development, Rhys Stanwix, said: This multi-fuel CHP plant will be an innovative addition to our generating portfolio and will make an important contribution to ensuring secure energy supplies.
Construction of the plant is expected to be completed in early 2015.
SSE insists that the construction of the new plant is not designed to replace the 1,000 MW of capacity of the existing power station at Ferrybridge, which is due to close in 2015 due to the introduction of the Large Combustion Plant Directive (LCPD).
LCPD is an EU directive which aims to reduce the emissions from combustion plants. SSE has introduced new technologies which have reduced emissions from two of their existing units to meet the LCPD standards however this is not possible for the existing plant in Ferrybridge.
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