E.ON Plans £300 Million Biomass Plant Near Bristol

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--German energy giant, E.ON AG (OTC:EONGY) (Dusseldorf) has announced plans to build a 150-megawatt (MW) biomass-fired power plant at the Royal Portbury Dock, near Bristol in southeast England.

The project is the latest in a surge of biomass and energy-from-waste (EfW) projects announced in the U.K. in the last couple of months. This week, the government granted planning permission for a new 60-MW biomass-fuelled power plant at a disused site in Tilbury Docks, Essex, in southeast England. For additional information, see related news item from September 2, 2009 - U.K. Green Lights 60-Megawatt Biomass Power Plant.

Planning permission is being sought by E.ON from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) for the £300 million ($490 million) plant, which E.ON hopes to start building in 2010 and complete by 2013.

"Our plans underline Bristol's reputation as one of the country's leading green areas," project developer Dr. Nilton Chan told Industrial Info. "It's through developments like this that we can help change the way that the U.K. generates electricity, reducing our carbon emissions and maintaining a secure and affordable energy supply for our customers."

When operational, the plant will be capable of powering up to 200,000 homes from burning recycled wood and wood pellets. Unlike many of the newer biomass-fired plants proposed in recent weeks, E.ON pledged that all feedstock will be sourced from within a 50-mile radius of the plant. The vast majority of wood-based fuel for U.K. biomass plants comes from the U.S, Europe and Canada.

"This project--and biomass generally--has a vital role to play in the U.K.'s future energy mix as we look to produce affordable, secure and lower-carbon energy for generations to come," said Dave Rogers, regional director for E.ON's renewables business. "This scheme alone will displace more than 450,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide every year, which is the equivalent of taking around 150,000 cars off U.K. roads. The development will also make a significant contribution toward meeting the Government's renewable energy targets."

E.ON already owns and operates the 44-MW Steven's Croft project, currently one of the U.K.'s largest biomass plants, in Lockerbie, Scotland. Steven's Croft opened in June this year, generating enough power for 70,000 homes. The £90 million ($147 million) plant is capable of displacing 140,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases annually and burns 480,000 tonnes of fuel, comprised of a variety of wood, each year.

With this latest application for planning permission, E.ON reaffirmed the company's goal to reduce carbon emissions across Europe by 50% by 2030. E.ON says that it has enough renewable projects in development within the U.K. to power the equivalent of 1 million homes. E.ON is currently involved in the groundbreaking London Array windfarm, which is aiming to be the world's largest windfarm, with a proposed capacity of 1 gigawatt. E.ON is working with Danish company DONG Energy (Skaerbaek) and the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, known as Masdar.

IIR's Renewable Energy Database provides extensive coverage on the Wind Energy, Geothermal, Hydroelectric, Landfill Gas-to-Energy and Utility-Scale Solar power plants throughout North America, and is now expanding coverage across the world.

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