Energy-from-waste operator Enfinium is moving ahead with plans to install carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology at its giant base in Yorkshire, following designation by energy ministry D-ESNZ of the plan as a Project of National Significance.
The company’s Ferrybridge 1 and 2 facilities at Knottingley, near Pontefract, make up Britain’s biggest energy from waste site.  They burn over 1.4 million tonnes of unrecyclable waste a year, making power sufficient for around 350,000 homes’ needs.
In December Enfinium announced an investment of up to £800 million in CCS at Ferrybridge over the project’s lifecycle.
Once operational, the technology will capture around 1.2 million tonnes of CO2 every year, including over 600,000 tonnes of durable, high-quality carbon removals. The company calculates it will offset emissions equivalent to every household in a city the size of Manchester.
Government confirmation awarded last week – known as a Section 35 direction – is an important step in consenting CCS at Ferrybridge.
A statutory consultation will now take place later this year, ahead of the submission of an application expected late next year to the Planning Inspectorate for development consent.
D-ESNZ’s direction notes that the scheme “would provide and support the decarbonisation of the largest energy from waste site in the UK, with the potential to deliver over a million tonnes of CO2 savings per annum, equating to 6.5% of the government’s annual carbon capture and storage ambition.”
Mike Maudsley, CEO of Enfinium said: “This designation is an important step in realising our ambition to turn Ferrybridge into one of Europe’s biggest carbon removal projects. Carbon capture at Ferrybridge will deliver jobs in the green economy, decarbonise unrecyclable waste produced across the North of England and support West Yorkshire’s plans to have a Net Zero economy by 2038.”
Paul Green, Business Development VP at Enfinium, added: “Carbon capture at Ferrybridge is a critical infrastructure project for the UK. We look forward to commencing our planning and consenting programme this year and sharing our plans with West Yorkshire communities and key stakeholders.”
