The Huntsman and Millennium Chemicals plants use advanced Combined Heat and Power (CHP) technology, combining electricity generation and heat production to deliver significant efficiency and cost benefits. The technology also delivers environmental benefits through lower carbon dioxide emissions.

As the government and energy suppliers look at ways of meeting the UK’s growing energy requirements whilst at the same time reducing carbon emissions, CHP is increasingly viewed as a highly efficient means of generating energy. According to a recent report by Poyri Energy Consulting for Greenpeace, the energy produced by CHP plants could be more than tripled in the UK, thereby making a significant contribution to European sustainable energy goals. Currently, CHP accounts for nearly eight per cent of all of the electricity generated in the UK.

Phil Piddington, Head of npower Cogen, commented: “We have been growing this part of the business for 15 years and our operations in Grimsby are a great example of how we can partner with industry to meet its energy needs on a long-term basis. Right now the growth potential in this market is huge. The past few months have seen an exciting level of investment into CHP, including our own plans to build a biomass CHP plant at the Tullis Russell paper mill in Scotland. We believe projects like this can and will be replicated successfully elsewhere.

“The Grimsby plants, like all of our other sites, form an important part of our commitment to invest in lower or zero carbon power generation sources. npower Cogen supports both UK and EU initiatives to invest in renewable energy sources, increase energy efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions. CHP technology is key to the reduction of our own carbon intensity and we believe that through wider adoption there is significant scope to improve the UK’s energy efficiency even further.”

At present, there is nearly 5500MWe of CHP capacity in the country, of which npower Cogen has invested in over 500MWe. Commissioned in 2003, the Huntsman scheme supports the manufacturer’s Grimsby production site. The Millennium Chemicals CHP plant was acquired by npower Cogen in 2004. npower Cogen currently supplies power and heat to 11 industrial customers across the UK in the oil, paper and chemical sectors. Other Cogen customers include ConocoPhillips in Teesside, Aylesford Newsprint in Kent and Dow Corning in Barry, Wales.