Green Light for Ferrybridge Biomass Project

---

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland) -- Scottish and Southern Energy plc (OTC:SSEZY) (SSE) (Perth, Scotland) has received the go-ahead from the U.K. government to develop a multi-fuel project within its existing coal-fired Ferrybridge power plant in West Yorkshire .

The proposed combined heat and power (CHP) project will have a potential generating capacity of up to 108 megawatts (MW) but Industrial Info understands that as it stands, the project under development will have a lower capacity ranging from 67-69MW. The plant will burn a variety of sustainable fuel sources, including biomass, waste-derived fuels and waste wood.

According to SSE Generation Ltd, which will be overseeing the project, enabling works will begin in early 2012 with the main construction kicking off in October 2012. The project is expected to be commissioned in early 2015.

The Ferrybridge coal-fired plant currently generates around 1,000MW of electricity but it due for closure in 2015 due to the European Large Combustion Plant Directive (LCPD). SSE denied that the multi-fuel project is designed to replace the lost power when the plant closes. "This multi-fuel CHP plant will be an innovative addition to our generating portfolio and will make an important contribution to ensuring secure energy supplies," commented SSE's Director of Thermal Development, Rhys Stanwix. "It will also create approximately 100 full time jobs throughout its operation and its construction will create 300 jobs on site over the next 3 years. These jobs, along with the additional considerable opportunities for local services and the local community enhancement work we are doing as part of the development will make a substantial contribution to the local area."

The company has not yet decided on what to do with the Ferrybridge coal-fired station after 2015 but it is also the site of the U.K.'s largest proposed carbon capture and storage (CCS) project.

The 5 MW CCS project, under development with project partners Doosan Babcock Energy Limited (Renfrew, Scotland) and Swedish energy giant Vattenfall AB (Stockholm) received government funding of €7.3 million ($10 million) last March. For additional information see March 23, 2010, article - Scottish and Southern Energy Wins Funding for U.K.'s Largest Carbon-Capture Pilot .

The two-year CCS trial project at Ferrybridge will use Doosan's post-combustion technology to capture up to 100 million tonnes of CO2 per day. The trial, which began earlier this year, is scheduled to finish by the end of 2012.

View Project Report - 300022349

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, and eight offices outside of North America, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.