Planning approval for £30m energy recovery park
Iona Capital is due to start on site in November with the construction of a 123,000 sq ft waste-to-energy plant in Southport, designed by Liverpool-based architect Condy Lofthouse.
The energy recovery park will include an anaerobic digestion facility, biomass boiler and waste transfer station with a combined capacity of 162,000 tonnes of non-hazardous and inert waste each year. Built on the current site of a waste transfer station in Blowick, the plant will generate 8.8MW of power, enough to heat 1,000 homes.
Planning permission from Sefton Council was initially delayed while councillors assessed the site’s impact on nearby houses and the local road network, but the scheme has now been granted full planning consent.
Andy Armstrong, director of Condy Lofthouse said: “This is the most modern facility of its type in the region and the way it utilises and processes different waste sources makes it one of the most environmentally efficient, too.
“The facility will turn co-mingled municipal waste into energy as well using green waste, food waste and residual waste. It’s a ground-breaking investment and is part of the country’s move towards district power generation and storage and away from ‘mother lode’ power sources like Hinkley C. Within five years facilities like this will be much more common and our energy mix more stable as a result.”
Newcastle-based contractor Surgo has been appointed to build the project. The first energy will come on stream by 31 March 2017, with the entire plant powered by its own output.
