Contractors break ground on Snetterton's straw-burning power plant

A formal ground-breaking ceremony was held yesterday to mark the official start of construction of the Snetterton renewable energy plant.

The 44.2MW straw-powered biomass plant will be fuelled by straw supplied by local farmers.

The project was originally developed by Iceni Energy, which was given permission to build the plant by Breckland Council in 2012. Iceni Energy has since joined forces with renewable energy project developer Eco2 to take the project to financial close.

The plant will be owned and operated for 15 years by Danish company Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor (BWSC) in partnership with a Danish infrastructure fund managed by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners. Together they are investing £165m in the project. BWSC is managing construction.

The biomass plant is expected to be operational by around mid-2017. It is based on energy technology developed in Denmark. The main part of the power plant is a boiler from the Burmeister & Wain Energy (BWE), which is considered to be especially suited for firing with straw.

BWSC director Christian Grundtvig, said: “We are delighted with the acquisition of the Snetterton plant which adds a strong base to our portfolio in the UK and we are looking forward to making it a successful project.”

Eco2 chief executive David Williams added: “It is fantastic to see work commencing, and we look forward to fostering our relationships in the East Anglian agricultural community, giving local farmers a secured income for their surplus straw, and working in partnership to deliver a sustainable-scale straw-fired biomass plant”.

This is the second biomass power plant created by BWSC in England. In 2013 it invested £145m in the Brigg project in Lincolnshire.

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