Viridor seeks permit for carbon capture at UK’s largest EfW

Viridor’s Runcorn plant is the largest EfW plant in the UK by capacity. It is able to process 1.1 million tonnes of waste per year.

The company explained that its proposed plans will see Runcorn become one of the “first” carbon capture projects integrated into an energy recovery facility worldwide, though it gave no timeline for the plans.

It is predicted to annually capture approximately 900,000 tonnes of CO2 with at least half of the captured CO2 originating from biogenic sources. Viridor has said this will lead to the removal of 450,000 tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere each year.

This initiative is part of the UK government’s support for eight selected projects, intended to kickstart a carbon capture industry within the country (see lletsrecycle.com story).

The Runcorn facility will be connected to the proposed HyNet CO2 transportation and storage network. This will enable the captured CO2 to be transported from the site and “securely” stored, aligning with the proposals outlined by the HyNet project.

The HyNet project includes:

• Hanson Padeswood Cement Works Carbon Capture and Storage Project
• Viridor Runcorn Industrial CCS
• Protos Energy Recovery Facility
• Buxton Lime Net Zero
• HyNet Hydrogen Production Plant 1 (HPP1)

Permissions

A spokesperson for Viridor said: “We’re pleased to confirm we have submitted an Environmental Permit application as part of our preparations for bringing a world leading carbon capture facility to Viridor’s Runcorn Energy Recovery Facility.

“This is just one of the permissions we’ll need for our carbon capture facility. It sets out how we will operate to the highest standards and minimise our environmental impact. As the body which regulates this type of process, the Environment Agency is currently conducting a consultation on our application.

“We would encourage anybody with an interest to find out more and submit their views to the Environment Agency as part of this consultation.”

Runcorn

The Runcorn EfW plant treats a range of non-hazardous waste types, most of which is refuse derived fuel  but also some  wastes and source-segregated packaging.

Waste material arrives either by rail or road and is weighed before proceeding into the tipping hall. There, it is tipped into an RDF bunker of sufficient capacity to hold several days’ worth of waste.