UK approves 65MW biomass power plant - to power 100,000 homes

Energy Minster Malcolm Wicks announced today the British government has approved Helius Energy's plan to build a 65MW energy crop and wood-burning power station in Lincolnshire. Initially waste wood will be used as fuel, with energy crops and waste from a biodiesel and ethanol factory - for which planning permission has been granted as well - being future feedstocks. The US$390.5 million biomass plant is one of a growing number of large-scale bioenergy projects in the UK.

The power station is the first phase of an integrated bioenergy development on a 36 hectare site 4km from the port of Immingham. It will produce enough renewable electricity for around 100,000 homes; most of North East Lincolnshire. The plant will save approximately 450,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year compared with a similarly sized coal-fired power station. Options to use the heat produced by the plant either on site or locally are also being considered.

Not only does [the plant] help tackle climate change and increase secure supplies of energy, but the building and running of this biomass plant will also provide jobs in Lincolnshire. This announcement takes us closer to achieving our proposed renewable energy targets. We have doubled the amount of renewable electricity to 5% over the last few years and later this month we will be launching our consultation on how we can drive this forward even further. - British Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks

Construction of Phase I, the biomass energy plant, costing circa £200 (€251.8/US$390.5) million, is expected to start later this year and to be operational by 2011. The biomass power plant will require around 430,000 tonnes of sustainably sourced feedstock each year. The power station will initially be fuelled by waste wood, specially grown crops and the leftovers from timber processing activities sourced from the UK and Europe:
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The biomass power station is expected to provide approximately 267 full time jobs during the construction phase and 75 permanent full time jobs working a shift pattern when the plant is running.

Planning permission has also been granted to build an additional biomass processing facility and bioethanol and biodiesel refinery. The intention is that spent grains from the bioethanol plant and glycerol from the biodiesel plant will eventually be used as the fuel feedstock for the power station.

The development will also include an area of approximately 20 hectares specifically set aside as a conservation area for birds and water voles.

Helius Energy is also developing a range of smaller scale (5 to 10 MW) combined heat-and-power biomass plants, coupled to food processing facilities.


The United Kingdom is lagging behind most of Europe when it comes to renewables, especially bioenergy, which is used on a large scale on the continent. However, several biomass power plants have been approved and are in various phases of construction or have been completed.

Late last year, the UK approved the construction of the world's biggest biomass plant in Port Talbot. The 350MW facility will power half of all homes in Wales and supply electricity for approximately 1.5 million people in a renewable and carbon-neutral way. When completed, the plant will produce about 70% of the Welsh Assembly Government's entire 2010 renewable energy target. This makes it Wales' single strongest weapon in the fight against climate change.

Renewable energy company Eco2 Biomass recently submitted a planning application to the North Kesteven District Council in Linconlshire to develop a new 40 MW straw fired renewable energy plant near the town of Sleaford.

E.ON's Steven's Croft biomass power station in Scotland, which is already operational, utilizes dedicated energy crops like fast growing willow. It powers 70,000 homes.

Another 25 MW plant is planned by E.ON in Sheffield. It will generate electricity for 40,000 homes and uses as fuel a combination of recycled wood and specially grown energy crops such as willow or tropical elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum).

Last year, Sembcorp Industries (Sembcorp) officially opened the UK's first large scale biomass power plant. The 30MW station is the first to produce renewable energy using naturally sustainable biomass without any input of fossil fuels. The plant, located at the Wilton International manufacturing site in Teesside in the Northeast of England, powers around 30,000 households.

Besides dedicated biomass power plants, several of the UK's coal-fired power stations have begun co-firing biomass, reducing their carbon emissions gradually (previous post).


References:
Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR): Biomass power station to be built in Lincolnshire - June 16, 2008.

Helius Energy: Consent Granted for North East Biomass Power Plant - June 16, 2008.

Biopact: UK approves world's biggest (350MW) biomass plant: will power half of all homes in Wales - November 21, 2007

Biopact: Eco2 Biomass to build 40MW biomass power plant in the UK - November 16, 2007

Biopact: UK's largest biomass plant approved, biomass task force created - June 16, 2007

Biopact: E.ON UK submits application for 25MW biomass plant - July 20, 2007

Biopact: UK opens first large scale 30MW biomass power station - November 13, 2007