- Energy waste operator Enfinium flicks switch on pilot project at Ferrybridge facility that is set to capture one tonne of CO2 a day.
- Enfinium’s plans are part of a growing pipeline of CCS and carbon removal projects, which experts have argued will be critical to meeting the UK’s net zero emissions goals.
Energy waste operator, Enfinium flicks switch on pilot project at Ferrybridge facility that is set to capture one tonne of CO2 a day.
Plans to install carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology on existing energy from waste plants across the UK have taken a major step forward, with the first pilot project coming online at an energy-from-waste facility in Ferrybridge.
Energy from waste operator enfinium said the first-of-its-kind project is now capturing one tonne of carbon dioxide a day and will run for at least 12 months.
The start of the pilot project marks an important milestone in the company’s Net Zero Transition Plan, which sets out how it plans to invest up to £1.7bn to fully decarbonise its operations and deliver up to 1.2 million tonnes of carbon removals a year in the 2030s.
Enfinium is one of a number of companies exploring the potential for installing CCS technologies on energy from waste plants – an approach which could deliver ‘negative emissions’ by capturing the CO2 released when the organic material contained in municipal waste is burned.
Supplied by green technology company Hitachi Zosen Inova (HZI), the CCS system installed for the pilot project is a containerised, scaled-down version of the technology that could deployed across all enfinium’s sites. It has been deployed at enfinium’s Ferrybridge-1 energy from waste facility in Knottingley, West Yorkshire, where it will collect operational data, including CO2 capture and solvent degradation rates, and trial different amine solvents.
“We are proud to have this sector-leading project up and running at our Ferrybridge facility,” said Mike Maudsley, CEO at enfinium. “Carbon capture and storage technology is central to how the UK will be able to decarbonise its unrecyclable waste.
“CCS is also critical to generating carbon removals at scale so the UK can achieve net zero. Using carbon capture, the energy from waste sector can provide significant levels of carbon removals and enfinium, with the support of HZI, are taking steps now to achieve this.”
Bruno-Frédéric Baudouin, CEO at HZI, said the operational pilot “demonstrates our capability to deliver vital decarbonising infrastructure for the waste sector that is critical to the industry’s Net Zero ambitions”.
“The project will meaningfully expand our carbon capture knowledge base and provide a springboard for delivering decarbonisation solutions worldwide,” he added. “Our vision is to enhance decarbonisation, circularity and supply security for present and future generations, and this project embodies perfectly what we are striving for.”
Enfinium’s plans are part of a growing pipeline of CCS and carbon removal projects, which experts have argued will be critical to meeting the UK’s net zero emissions goals.
However, some environmental campaigners have questioned the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of CCS projects while also warning that the development of carbon removal capacity could distract from the need to cut carbon emissions at source.
Meanwhile, the nascent CCS and carbon removals sector are lobbying government to provide clear subsidy and policy frameworks that will allow project developers to reach final investment decisions.
Tracy Brabin, Mayor of West Yorkshire, welcomed the new project, hailing it as part of the region’s “long tradition of energy generation and innovation.”