RWE has given further details on plans for a new gas-fired power plant at Stallingborough.
It is the largest of three major investments being progressed as the German energy giant embraces carbon capture and storage in the UK, with the purpose built proposal alongside two retro-fitting schemes at stations it owns and operates. Investment could total more than £1 billion in North East Lincolnshire alone.
First revealed in December as part of wider plans for the Viking CCS transportation and storage proposals on the South Humber Bank, RWE said it will have a capacity of up to 800MW, enough to power one million homes, while saving millions of tonnes of CO2 annually. It would create 50 permanent jobs, with thousands in the construction process, with hundreds of millions of pounds to be invested.
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Location has yet to be confirmed, but RWE bought land off Hobson Way almost 15 years ago, with biomass the fuel-source then considered under proposals initially brought forward by Helius Energy, close to Lenzing Fibers.
It could sit between there and EPUKI’s gas-fired plant, where there are consented plans for a 95MW energy from waste addition.
Tom Glover, UK country chair for RWE, said: “In order to decarbonise the power sector, support security of supply and enable large scale industrial decarbonisation, it is important that clean gas generation projects are developed. Carbon capture can support the expansion of the other renewable and low carbon technologies that RWE is a leader in deploying, by providing energy security through firm and flexible provision of electricity that is not reliant on weather. I am pleased to announce our plans for three UK carbon capture projects, representing an important step in our progression towards decarbonising our existing gas fleet.”
The 1.7GW Staythorpe plant in Newark, Nottinghamshire, would also be connected to the Viking project, which has been described as a leading contender in the Track Two cluster approach the government is deploying.
The third project focuses on Pembroke in South Wales, with potential to ship CO2 into the Humber scheme via Immingham.
Together they represent 4.7GW of power and the capture of 11 million tonnes of CO2.
RWE, behind three new offshore wind farms in various stages of development off the East Coast, is already the operator of the largest fleet of gas fired power stations, and the addition would follow the advances at the Keadby cluster under SSE Thermal, where carbon capture is also proposed, as well as VPI at Immingham.
Mr Glover said that as well as being key to the UK’s long term energy security, the three proposed CCS projects would play a key part in helping RWE achieve its own global ambition to be carbon neutral by 2040 – targets aligned with the Paris Agreement.
Fiona Auty, head of generation technology development for RWE, said: “We are pleased to announce our plans for the Stallingborough carbon capture project. The project will support the decarbonisation of the power sector, support the security of supply, and large scale industrial decarbonisation. RWE is one of the largest offshore wind developers, carbon capture can support the expansion of offshore wind providing energy security on rare days when the wind is low and there is no sun.”
RWE is now progressing with initial environmental studies and surveys and is preparing information in order to apply to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero’s Track Two Phase Two cluster sequencing funding application process. This is dedicated to carbon capture projects located close to carbon capture storage or transport facilities.
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