Plymouth EFW

The new Plymouth EfW (Energy from Waste) plant will be built in Devenport Dockyard by Kier Construction. Once completed the incinerator will have capacity to burn 245,000 tonnes of waste a year that might otherwise have gone to landfill. A by-product from the waste will be 57,000 tonnes of bottom ash will can be used in road construction and used as an aggregate for concrete.

Contractor MVV awarded the contact to Kier and the project is expected to create 150 construction jobs with a goal of seeking out 70% of these from the local community. Once up and running it is expected there will be 35 permanent jobs at the plant.

The Plymouth EfW facility will provide a waste treatment solution for the South West Devon Waste Partnership, dealing with waste from Plymouth, Devon and Torbay that is not recycled or composted. In addition to generating electricity the new plant will produce usable heat in combined heat and power (CHP) mode, thereby saving valuable fossil resources and reducing carbon dioxide output.

Dockyard operator Babcock Marine is contributing to the building costs in return for using waste heat and electricity to power the shipping complex, which spends around £15m a year meeting its energy needs.

Kier Construction asked Billington Structures to supply the structural steelwork for the 6 buildings and an access bridge at Plymouth EfW. The buildings include an Administration Building, Waste Management Building, Flue Gas Fan System, Workshop Building, Tipping Hall and Water Treatment Building. Billington delivered structural steel including crane beams to all of the buildings as well as metal decking, precast stairs, and steel for a new 31m bridge.