The contract has a value of £2 billion over 29 years, with the facility expected to be operational from 2030.
The facility is a public-private partnership (PPP) infrastructure project and includes seven partner councils: Darlington, Durham, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Redcar & Cleveland and Stockton.
Each of the partner authorities is represented on the board of the Special Purpose Vehicle company, TVERL.
Speaking on behalf of the partner authorities, Denise McGuckin, Chief Executive of Hartlepool Borough Council, said: “We are very proud to reach the delivery phase of this critical infrastructure project for the North-East, which will provide a safe, reliable, sustainable and affordable solution for the waste left over after recycling and re-using as much as we can.
“We are delighted to partner with Viridor, which is a highly experienced operator of UK energy recovery infrastructure, and we look forward to working with them to deliver, not just this vital facility, but a wider range of benefits – including employment, training and economic opportunities – to the communities we serve.”
The two-line facility will be capable of processing approximately 450,000 tonnes of residual waste annually and will generate up to 49.9 MW of baseload electricity for the local grid.
Once operational, the site will employ 50 full-time individuals.
Construction will begin on disused industrial land at Teesworks in Redcar later this year, with Kanadevia Inova selected as the Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor.
The Swiss Energy from Waste (EfW) engineering company and Viridor have previously worked together on several projects, including most recently on the Thameside Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) in the Port of Tilbury, Essex, and Westfield ERF in Fife, Scotland.
Development of the TVERF will take Viridor’s EfW fleet to 13 facilities across England, Scotland and Wales.
Richard Belfield, Group Development Director at Viridor, said: “Today we are celebrating the fact that Tees Valley Energy Recovery Facility has reached financial close and will join the growing Viridor EfW fleet.
“This project underpins our continued ambition to offer a scalable, safe and long-term solution to manage residual waste, while generating power for the local grid.
“Viridor is proud to be working with the seven councils and Kanadevia Inova as we progress this project.
“The plant will provide local jobs and economic regeneration, as well as being a responsible neighbour to the local community and the wider region.”
Please can you tell me, is Denice McGuckin correct to say, the incinerator will provide a safe, reliable, sustainable and affordable solution…? Bearing in mind the emissions and that nothing is left but ashes for the future generations is it safe and is it sustainable?