Barnsley Council Municipal District issued a permit for the project construction, located on the former coal mine site. The company is expected to recycle up to 150 thousand tons of wood waste annually.
During the recycling process wood waste is loaded into the chamber, and then heated up without oxygen. The result of such reaction is biogas which is subsequently used for the operation of power-generating turbines. It is expected that the volume of energy generated is to be enough to power 49,000 homes.
Peel Environmental originally planned to include anaerobic digestion facility into the system, but it was later omitted from the documentation submitted to the Council for consideration.
The exact dates of construction and putting into operation are not yet known, but in this moment, the company's management has reported that up to 200 temporary jobs would be created during construction period and up to 25 permanent jobs. The total investment will amount of about £ 65 million.
Also the details, about the way raw material is supplied, are unknown, it is only mentioned that wood waste is supplied by local entrepreneurs, that will create additional opportunities for local businesses.
A Peel Environmental development manager Jane Gaston said that the decision would give a second chance to a former coal mine that was once a major provider of work in the area and the center of national power. Fortunately, when deciding the District Council took into account all the evidence that the project would not only provide a new source of energy, but also would give rise to economy. Thus, the construction of the Alternate Sources of Energy Centre would become a catalyst for the soil reclamation process and would attract new foreign investments.
