Veolia had originally signed a contract with the county in 2011 – estimated at the time to be worth £800 million – to treat the county’s residual waste, centred-around plans to build a 380,000 tonnes per year energy-from-waste (EfW) plant at New Barnfield.
However, plans for the New Barnfield site were thrown out, and Veolia has instead resurrected plans to develop an energy recovery facility at Rye House in Hoddesdon on land owned by Tarmac Aggregates. The alternative plan was put to Hertfordshire council earlier this year and accepted by the authority in March (see letsrecycle.com story).
This week the contractor has signed a new contract with Hertfordshire council, replacing the arrangement signed in 2011. The company claims that the new deal ‘strengthens’ its partnership with the local authority.
A company spokesman said: ” In accordance with the contract signed in 2011 following the Secretary of State’s decision to refuse planning permission for a RERF at New Barnfield in Hatfield, we submitted a Revised Project Plan to Hertfordshire county council in 2015. The RPP proposed an ERF at Rye House in Hoddesdon and is the basis of the contract we have now signed.”
Estelle Brachlianoff, senior executive vice president for Veolia UK and Ireland, commented: “Our partnership with Hertfordshire county council has been strengthened following this new contract that will result in a significant investment in waste treatment infrastructure. This solution will not only maximise landfill diversion, but also represents a source of low carbon energy which will power 69,000 homes per year.”
Plans
Veolia is currently drawing up a planning application for the plant, following a public consultation in the summer.
Should the application be approved in the autumn, construction work on the facility would begin in 2017. If the plans progress on schedule the facility would be operational by 2020. Construction of the plant will create around 300 jobs, the company claims, as well as requiring around 40 permanent staff.
Documents filed by Hertfordshire council suggest that the revised plan put forward by Veolia offer it the ‘best value for money’ – but note that should the Rye House plant be denied planning consent, the council would be able to terminate the contract for a cost of close to £1.2 million.
The council currently has interim disposal contracts in place until 2018, which could be extended to 2021 which include sending waste to FCC’s Greatmoor Energy Recovery Facility in Buckinghamshire, the Edmonton EcoPark in North London and the Ardley Energy from Waste Facility in Oxfordshire, operated by Viridor.
Hertfordshire currently achieves an overall recycling rate of close to 49.8% – according to figures posted in 2014/15.
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