Bio hub planned for Wales

Gupta Family Group unveiled plans today for a renewable energy hub on the South Wales coast at Newport that would supply power to a local steel works.

The group said the plan would involve turning the existing 395MW Uskmouth power station into a centre of excellence for advanced conversion technologies, using biomass, waste and other sustainable energy sources.

It would supply electricity to Liberty Steel’s neighbouring arc furnace, which recycles domestic scrap to supply up to 20% of the UK’s steel market.

Gupta Family companies, Simec and Liberty House, have invested in the acquisition and restart of Uskmouth power station and the steel mill.

One of the three mothballed generating units at the power station has been fired-up again using coal as a short-term measure ahead of the conversion, the company said.

But, the group said, the speed at which the plans progress will depend on UK government support for renewable energy projects, which is under review at the moment.

Liberty House executive chair Sanjeev Gupta said: “We are in discussion with the UK government to ensure that those, like us, who are investing to create renewable energy capacity, can rely on support to give them stable markets at sustainable prices for the power they generate.”

He added that he was hopeful the UK government would help protect steel jobs by continuing to work on ways of reducing the impact of carbon tax and green levies on intensive energy users in industry.

Image: sxc