The funding, which supports the overall £190 million spend on the plant, also stands as the first investment by ESB in the UK’s waste and biomass sector.
Tilbury Green Power Ltd, a subsidiary of Dutch firm Express Energy Holdings, will build the Essex-based facility – which is expected to generate around 300GWh per year for the National Grid.
The plant will have capacity to process 650,000 tonnes of fuel per year from commercial firms, comprising solid recovered fuel (SRF) and biomass sourced from recovered and virgin wood materials.
GIB and ESB are each committing £35 million to the project in a combination of equity and shareholder loans, with an additional £2m participation from technology provider Aalborg Energie Technik a/s. Senior debt funding is being provided by EKF (Eksport Kredit Fonden), Investec and Rabobank.
A number of suppliers have so far been contracted to provide feedstock for the plant, with Stobart Biomass expected to supply 270,000 tonnes of waste wood per year sourced from the local catchment area.
Planning
The firm originally received planning permission for the site in 2009 on the basis that it would source fuels from the East of England. However, this has since been extended to within a 50-mile radius of the site.
In April 2014, the Department for Energy & Climate Change launched a consultation over the firm’s application to extend the time period for delivering the development by one year – with a new deadline to begin construction set for August 2015.
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Thurrock council, The Port of London Authority and the Environment Agency were among a number of organisations to state they had “no objection” to extending the time allowed for delivery of the project.
The plant will provide around 50 permanent jobs when it is scheduled to begin operations in early 2017. Meanwhile, BWSC has been appointed EPC contractor and O&M provider for the project.
GIB
Shaun Kinsbury, chief executive at the UK Green Investment Bank, said: “The Tilbury project is well placed to capitalise on the UK’s largest regional waste wood market, generating green electricity and creating local employment from London’s waste resources. The project is also important for marking the first investment of the Irish electricity utility ESB in UK waste and biomass infrastructure.”
Pat O’Doherty, chief executive of ESB, added: “ESB’s investment in Tilbury Green Power demonstrates the company’s continuing commitment renewable electricity generation and further reducing the carbon mix in our portfolio. It complements ESB’s existing UK investments in wind and gas-fired generation.
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