Dunbar EfW
An EfW facility based upon conventional combustion technology which has R1 status and so is classified as an ERF. Dunbar has permitted capacity of 390,000 tonnes per annum.
The plant is operated and owned by Viridor. Delivery of waste is by road and rail and the facility processes primarily residual Household Waste and some Commercial Waste[1]
Site Details
| Operator | Viridor |
|---|---|
| Site | Dunbar EfW |
| Size | Large |
| Permit No | PPC/A/1032878 |
| Plated Capacity | 390 |
| Status | Operational |
Plant Description
Built by a JV between Interserve and Babcox & Wilcox Volund A/S as a turnkey EPC contract, which started in 2015 and was delivered in January 2019 at a reported [3] £177m capital cost.
The plant comprises 2 lines via standard combustion B&W Volund proprietary Dynagrate technology, generating super-heated steam, and is configured to run on primarily residual Household Waste and similar residual Commercial Waste with design capability up to 320,000 tonnes per annum based on a prepared WDF fuel CV of 10MJ/kg[4].
B&W Volund signed a maintenance and improvement plan contract with all plants delivered ot Viridor in 2020[5].
The permit increased the throughput capacity to 390,000 tonnes per year in 2023[1].
History
The Dunbar facility was built by Viridor to service Scotland's residual Household Waste and Commercial Waste[2]. This includes RDF from its contract with Clyde Valley in May 2016 which processes 190,000 tonnes per annum via Viridor's Bargeddie site in North Lanarkshire (which opened in January 2020).
It is located in East Lothian on Viridor's Oxwellmains Landfill site which was due to close with the operation of the facility, which commenced in January 2019.
In December 2025 Equitix increased their stake in Viridor with a path to acquire 50% of the business[6].
