Peel Environmental, the renewable energy division of infrastructure enterprise The Peel Group, announced today (11 June) that plans to build a £65-million biomass gasification facility at the site of the former Houghton Main Colliery in Barnsley have been approved by the council’s planning board.

According to the company, the proposed Timber Resource Recovery Centre will accept up to 150,000 tonnes of waste wood or biomass per year and use an ‘advanced gasification process’ to generate enough energy to power around 49,000 homes. Resource asked Peel Environmental where it would source its waste wood or biomass from, but has not received a response.

The proposed development is one of a number of sites that Peel Environmental is advancing in a joint venture with Harworth Estates, a property and regeneration company based in the Midlands and the North of England.

If constructed, the company claims the site has the potential to provide up to 25 jobs during operation, and up to 200 jobs during construction and supply chain opportunities for the area.

It will be built and operated by specialist developer Northern Bio Power, a company that has already developed a number of advanced timber resource recovery plants around the UK in locations such as: Plymouth, Stoke, Derby and Birmingham.

Centre will bring a ‘significant economic boost into Barnsley’

Jane Gaston, Development Manager at Peel Environment said: “This decision secures a renewable future for the former colliery site, which was once a major employer in Barnsley and at the heart of powering the country. We’re pleased that the council has backed this renewable project that will help widen the energy mix and bring a significant economic boost into Barnsley.

“There is a real opportunity for the Houghton Main Renewable Energy Centre to act as a catalyst for further regeneration as the site is surrounded by land earmarked for employment use. With the ability to provide a renewable and reliable source of energy, the centre could unlock even further inward invest to the area.”

Peel delays Barton plant

The announcement follows a February 2015 decision by Peel Energy to delay construction of the company’s biomass incineration plant in Davyhulme, Manchester, to assess whether running it as a combined heat and power (CHP) would be more energy efficient than just running it as an electricity plant.

The move was welcomed by those opposing the construction of the facility, including anti-incineration body Breathe Clean Air Group (BCAG), which has argued that the incinerator would create air pollution, negatively impact health, and would not use best-available technology.

Boom in biomass plants

Large biomass combustion plants have been gaining in popularity, with a 100-megawatt (MW) plant in North Blyth and a 150MW E.ON facility in Bristol receiving planning permission in recent years, and a number of coal-fired power stations including Drax and Eggborough, converting to run, at least in part, off biomass. The UK Green Investment Bank has thrown its weight behind several large biomass plants, including one in Speyside and one in Birmingham, despite calls from environmentalists for it to ‘stop funding big biomass’.

In 2012, plant biomass accounted for 18.3 per cent of renewable energy, and DECC’s ‘Renewables Roadmap’ estimates that by 2020, biomass could potentially provide between 26 and 42 per cent of renewable energy in the UK. To achieve this, government expects to provide a subsidy for biomass of between £442 million and £736 million, but there are worries the government could be too dependent on biomass – and potentially the wrong type of biomass to meet its renewable energy targets.

Indeed, a November 2012 report published by the RSPB, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace found that biomass plants that burn trees are actually worse for the environment than coal plants, with the burning of typical conifer trees resulting in 49 per cent more emissions than coal; the groups advocated the building of small-scale biomass plants with sustainable feed stocks, such as wood waste.

Find out more about Peel Environmental’s current development sites.