Environmental Impact Assessment

InterGen, advised by international environmental consultancy ENVIRON (UK), has been awarded Section 36 consent by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to expand its natural gas-fired power station.

ENVIRON carried out the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process and prepared the Environmental Statement necessary to accompany the Section 36 consent application and the operating permit application.

The expansion represents a substantial investment and will provide 900 megawatts (MW) of additional generating capacity, which is enough electricity to meet the needs of approximately one million homes. InterGen aims to have the expansion operational by 2014 to help address the projected electricity generation gap in the UK.

The expanded facility will feature the latest natural gas combined cycle technology (CCGT) to ensure maximum energy efficiency and minimal impact on the environment. It will be amongst the most efficient electricity generators in the UK.

Mark Somerset, InterGen’s European General Manager said: “We are delighted to have been awarded planning consent for the Spalding Energy Expansion project. The project demonstrates InterGen’s commitment to providing flexible new generating capacity in the UK, which will play a key role in ensuring secure energy supplies for the future.”

He added, “InterGen has enjoyed being a part of the Spalding community for nearly ten years, during which time we have forged many strong partnerships. We look forward to building upon these relationships, bringing skilled jobs to the area and boosting local businesses.”

Matt Davies, Principal of ENVIRON, said: “This was one of the first projects to be assessed against the government’s carbon capture policy. To support this, our work on the Environmental Impact Assessment process needed to take a wider view and incorporate the cumulative effects of carbon capture and storage, the associated gas pipeline and power line projects as well as the power station that was the subject of the S36 consent.

“We’re delighted that the project now has consent and are looking forward to working alongside InterGen as the project moves forward to construction.”

Construction of the expansion is anticipated to take up to three years, at a cost of £500 million.