The Green Investment Bank will commit £47m to a new £107m Energy from Waste (EfW) plant in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The 14.85MW facility will be located adjacent to Bombardier’s wing facility in the city’s Harbour Estate and will be fuelled by feedstock derived from household and commercial waste.
Bouygues Energies and Services has been awarded the contract to design, build and operate the plant, which is slated to be fully operational by late 2017.
A long-term feedstock contract has been agreed with waste management company Pioneer Fuels and a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) has been signed with Bombardier.
It will be the largest EfW plant to be financed in Northern Ireland and is expected to generate around 61GWh of renewable electricity annually.
The plant qualifies for the Renewable Obligation scheme, is expected to create around 250 jobs during construction and 20 permanent positions in operations.
Northern Ireland Assembly minister of enterprise, trade and investment Jonathan Bell said: “This multi-million pound project is hugely significant, not just for Belfast, but for the Northern Ireland economy as a whole as it will create hundreds of jobs and protect many more.
“As well as creating 250 construction jobs and 20 full-time posts once the facility is operational, it will also provide a competitive energy source for Bombardier, which is our largest manufacturing employer.”
GIB has made its investment as part of a joint venture – Full Circle Generation – with developer RiverRidge Energy Limited, Equitix and P3P Partners.
GIB chief executive Shaun Kingsbury added: “Northern Ireland was the location of one of GIB’s earliest investments and it gives us great pleasure to announce another important commitment to the country’s green infrastructure network.
“The plant will generate cleaner, greener electricity that can be used to the benefit of local employers while helping local authorities and businesses meet waste reduction targets.”
Image: Waste2Tricity
