DerbyshireCounty Council have approved Future Earth Energy’s Drakelow Renewable Energy Centre on the site of the former Drakelow C Power Station, south of Burton on Trent, Derbyshire. The application received unanimous support from councillors with only one objection received from the local community during the consultation process.
TNEI provided support to Future Earth Energy throughout the project in the form of grid connection assessment by specialists within our Power Systems Team, EIA coordination and management, planning support and application submission, specialist noise assessment, community engagement support and environmental permit preparation.
The envisaged timetable for the next Contracts for Difference auction lead to a challenging programme for delivery of the EIA and planning application. The project was delivered through maintenance of a close working relationship with Derbyshire County Council and effective management of the project team. Testament to the success of the project was the feedback received from planning officers regarding both the content of the Environmental Statement and planning application and that the concerns of members and the local community had been addressed ahead of determination.
The Drakelow REC project provides an excellent example of how Energy from Waste proposals can be carefully sited, designed and delivered working alongside the local community and determining authority.
The plant will use around 169,000 tonnes of Biomass Rich Fuel, a form of Refuse Derived Fuel that requires no onsite processing. It will utilise a gasification technology to produce a syngas that will be used to generate electricity onsite using a steam turbine. Generated electricity will be exported to grid and the plant has been designed to be CHP ready so that future development on the adjacent Drakelow Park site could readily make use of generated heat.
Adrian Smith, Development Director for Future Earth Energy, said “Future Earth Energy set itself a challenging programme for securing planning consent and grid connection offer. To achieve this ambitious goal we needed the support and advice of an experienced and dedicated Planning, Environmental and Power Systems Consultant with the commitment and management skills to deliver. We are delighted to have chosen TNEI for this role and we look forward to working with the team on future projects.”
To read more about the project please go to https://tneigroup-com.stackstaging.com/case-studies/energy-waste-scheme.
If you would like to discuss how TNEI can help you deliver similar projects please contact Jason McGray on 0191 211 1430 or email jason.mcgray@tnei.co.uk.
