Dong Energy Plans 300-Megawatt Biomass Plant for Hull Port

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Danish energy giant Dong Energy (Skaerbaek, Denmark) has announced plans to build a 300-megawatt (MW) biomass plant in Hull, England.

The plant is being proposed for an 80,000-square-metre site of reclaimed land near Queen Elizabeth Dock in the port of Hull. The plant will burn waste wood as fuel and will generate enough electricity to power about 500,000 homes.

The news of the planned development comes just days after the CEO of Drax Group plc (LSE:DRX) (Selby, England) threatened to severely curtail its investment in current and planned biomass projects in the U.K. unless the government improved subsidies for biomass schemes. For related item, see February 22, 2010, article - Drax Stalls Biomass Facility at U.K.'s Largest Coal Plant.

Dong Energy has signed an exclusive deal with site owner Associated British Ports (ABP) (London), and the new plant will be joined by another £100 million ($154 million) project, the Hull Riverside Bulk Terminal (HRBT), which will be a deepwater berth beside the plant that can be used for delivering imported biomass fuel.

"We want to develop the plant so that it offers the maximum benefit to the local community for employment and other things as well," said Ian Crummack, a spokesman for Dong Energy. "The Humber Estuary location has a lot of potential, particularly because it offers the advantage of bringing biomass to the power station via water. This greatly reduced the need to transport the fuel by road and would therefore reduce the power station's carbon footprint and impact on the local transport network."

Crummack added: "In addition, the site we are considering is reclaimed land that is currently vacant, so developing a modern biomass facility would regenerate this land and bring employment."

Peter Jones, chief executive of ABP, said: "Large biomass power stations reliant on imported fuels will need facilities such as HRBT. Being able to announce this step forward for the HRBT development associated with Dong Energy's announcement gives a real boost for the Port of Hull and the wider region. These projects represent potential major investments in infrastructure at a time when they are most needed."

The biomass investment supports the company's shift away from coal-fired plants. Last October, the company cancelled two planned coal-fired projects in North Ayrshire in Scotland and Emden in Germany, claiming that commercial-scale carbon capture and storage technology would not be viable. For related news items see October 2009 articles - Dong Energy Cancels Two Coal-Fired Projects and Dong Energy Withdraws from CCS Thermal Power Plants to Focus on Green Energy.

The local council has welcomed the announcement and said the plans add to Hull's growing reputation for green-power projects.

Hull council leader Carl Minns said: "This announcement will help Hull to establish itself as the green centre of the energy in the region. The environmentally responsible site will create construction jobs and permanent jobs during operation for local people in years to come."

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