£30m generating plant gets thumbs up

UP to 100 new jobs are to be created after a £30m waste-to-energy plant in Southport – generating enough power to heat 1,000 homes – was given planning permission.

Liverpool architects Condy Lofthouse secured permission for the plant which is being funded by Iona Capital and will include an anaerobic digestion facility, biomass and waste transfer station with combined capacity of 162,000 tonnes of non-hazardous and inert waste a year.

“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,” said Andy Armstong of Condy Lofthouse, who designed the facility and managed the planning application to Sefton Council.

“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.”

Planning permission was initially delayed while councillors assessed the site’s impact on nearby houses and the local road network but they were satisfied with the professional advice available, said Mr Armstrong, and have granted full planning permission.

Construction on site starts in the first week of November under the aegis of specialist Newcastle-based contractor Surgo.

The first energy will come on stream by March 31, with the entire plant powered by its own output.