Residual Waste can be used as a feedstock for Energy from Waste (EfW) and Residual Waste is considered as partially renewable or a low carbon energy source as a result of the energy produced from the fraction of Residual Waste derived from Biomass that is considered renewable[1].

Operational EfW

The following list summarizes all operational EfW sites that were operational as of January 2020, with limited summary information in the table. More detailed information can be found by clicking through to the site-specific page:

 
Locations of Operational residual waste EfWs in the UK
ID Site Name Capacity (kt)

1. Runcorn EfW 1100
2. Riverside Resource Recovery Facility (RRRF) 850
3. Teeside EfW - lines 1-5 (Teeside & NEERC), Billingham. line 3 756
3. North East Energy Recovery Centre. Lines 4 & 5 0
3. North East Energy Recovery Centre. Lines 1&2 0
4. Ferrybridge Multifuel 1 (FM1) 725
5. Edmonton EcoPark EfW 750
6. Allington EFW 560
7. SELCHP ERF 464
8. Lakeside EfW 468
9. Wilton 11 EfW 500
10. Trident Park (Cardiff ERF) 425
11. Tyseley ERF 441
12. Severnside Energy Recovery Centre 467
13. Greatmoor EfW 345
14. Four Ashes EfW (Staffordshire ERF) (W2R) 340
15. Ardley EfW 378
16. Allerton Waste Recovery Park (EfW) 320
17. Coventry EfW Plant 315
18. Great Blakenham EfW 295
19. North Yard EfW (Devonport EfW CHP Facility) 275
20. Cornwall ERC 240
21. Sheffield ERF 245
22. North Quay ERF (Newhaven) 242
23. Marchwood ERF (Integra South West) 220
24. Portsmouth ERF (Integra South East) 220
25. Stoke-on-Trent EfW 210
26. EnviRecover - Hartlebury EFW 230
27. Eastcroft EfW (Lines 1 & 2) 200
28. Leeds Recycling & ERF (Cross Green ERF) 190
30. Lincolnshire EFW 190
31. Vine Street EfW (Kirkless EfW) 135
32. Glasgow Renewable Energy and Recycling Centre (ACT) 154
33. Bolton TRF 128
34. Baldovie and Dundee EfW 260
34. Dundee EfW CHP Facility 0
35. Wolverhampton EfW 118
36. Chineham ERF (Integra North) 110
37. Dudley EfW 105
38. Battlefield EfW 102
39. Milton Keynes Waste Recovery Park 140
40. Peterborough EfW 110
41. Lancing EfW 75
42. Exeter Energy Recovery Facility 60
43. Newlincs EfW 56
44. Lerwick Energy Recovery Plant (Shetland EfW Plant) 24
47. Rookery Pit Energy Recovery Facility (Rookery South) 585
48. Ferrybridge Multifuel 2 (FM2) 725
49. Kemsley K3 EfW 657
50. Severn Road Resource Recovery Centre 377
51. Dunbar EfW (Oxwellmains EfW) 390
52. Beddington EfW 347
54. Energy Works (Hull) 315
55. Parc Adfer EfW 232
56. Javelin Park EfW 190
57. Levenseat EfW 97
58. Millerhill EfW 190
61. Belfast Harbour Estate 144
66. Charlton Lane Eco Park (ACT) 55
67. Isle of Wight Waste Recovery Park 44
68. Sustainable Energy Centre 15
73. Newhurst EFW 455
78. Hooton Bio Power 260
148. Earls Gate Energy Centre 274
149. Baddersley EfW 130
151. NESS Energy Project 150

Summary site information collated from a variety of sources including: Monksleigh [1], Tolvik [2], EA, SEPA, NRW, DEFRA, BEIS and owner and developer websites.

The map, right, contains the locations of all the sites listed above - please note that due to scale and cartographic limitations some of the numbers in the list might not be shown on the map due to sites being in close proximity, or sites in areas of high density. This does not mean that the site marker is not there. An example of this is Ferrybridge as both FM1 & FM2 are in geographically similar locations, a few 100m apart, and as a result the location markers will appear on top of each other, and as a result one will block the other's numerical id. This also applies to the following maps on sites in construction and planning.

Growth in Residual Waste EfW

Historically, the UK has been very dependent on Landfill or Incineration without energy recovery for Disposal of Residual Waste. The landfill diversion targets set in the mid 1990s promoted EfW developments. The diversion of residual waste away from Landfill and into EfW processes reduces emissions of methane and pollution originating from Landfill sites and increases production of renewable energy[1]. Energy from Waste is the now the main method for dealing with Residual Waste, with Landfill of Residual Waste being the least preferred method, as outlined in the Waste Hierarchy[1].

In 2018, the amount of residual waste that was sent to EfW processes in the UK increased by 5.6%, amounting to a total of 11.5 million tonnes being sent to 42 operational EfW facilities across the UK[2]. This represents 41.8% of the total residual waste produced in the UK in 2018 (increasing from 39.5% in 2017)[2]. The total power generated from EfW facilities in 2018 was 6,153 GWh, this supplied 1.9% of the total UK power generation, and gives a average of 536 kWh of power generated per tonne of residual waste treated at UK EfW facilities[2]. ‌ The graph below displays how the tonnage of residual waste processes by UK EfW facilities has changed over recent years, and excludes sites reported as operational in the previous section that were commissioned in 2019 and early 2020.

Changes in residual waste tonnage processed by EfWs, Graph derived from Tolvik, 2019[2]
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Table Summarizing Graph Data
Year 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Tonnes 3.3 3.3 3.3 3.6 4.2 4.8 5.2 5.5 6.7 8.4 10.1 10.9 11.5


The table below shows the power and heat generation from residual waste EfW facilities in the UK between 2014-2018 (Derived from Tolvik, 2019[2]).

Power and Heat Table
Year 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Net Power Export (GWhe) 3,368 4,636 5,241 6,187 6,153
Net Heat Export (GWhth NA 554 730 865 1,112


England produced 12.5 million tonnes of Residual Waste from Households in 2016[3], and it is estimated that there will be an increase in EfW capacity for Residual Waste by 2 million tonnes/year by 2022 [4].

With the increasing social, economic and political drive to Prevent, Reuse and Recycle more waste, in line with the Waste Hierarchy and the Circular Economy the amount of Residual Waste is expected to decrease in the medium to long term[1]. The exact magnitude of this reduction and the Residual Waste continuing to need to be delivered to EfW has been debated at length by different commentators over the last few years.

Under Construction EfW

The following list summarizes all EfW sites that were under construction January 2020, with limited summary information in the table. Note the capacity exceeds the estimated growth of 2,000,000 tonnes reported in the previous section (historically there have been some plants that have not passed from construction to operation due to commissioning issues but this is not a reflection that some of the plants below will not reach operation, merely a refection of different data sources and time frames for reporting capacity). More detailed information can be found by clicking through to the site-specific page:

 
Under Construction EfW within the UK.
ID Site Name Capacity

45. North London Heat and Power (Edmonton EcoPark Replacement) 700kt
46. Lostock Sustainable Energy Plant 600kt
62. Showground Road 105kt
69. Riverside Energy Park (REP) 650kt
70. Rivenhall EFW 595kt
72. Protos EFW 400kt
75. Slough Multifuel EFW 480kt
76. Walsall Energy Recovery Facility 478kt
83. Binn Eco Park EFW 85kt
95. Drakelow Renewable Energy Centre 169kt
127. South Clyde Energy Centre, Bogmoor Road, Glasgow 385kt
144. Drumgray Energy Recovery Centre (DERC) 300kt
146. Kelvin Energy Recovery Facility 400kt
170. Oldhall EfW Plant 180kt
178. Skelton Grange EfW Plant 435kt
184. Westfield EfW Plant 240kt
216. Advanced Biofuel Solutions 8kt

Summary site information collated from a variety of sources including: Monksleigh [3], Tolvik [4], EA, SEPA, NRW, DEFRA, BEIS and owner and developer websites

In Planning EfW

The following list summarizes all EfW sites that were in the planning process as at January 2020, with summary capacity shown in the table. In some cases planned capacity replaces existing sites, and no comment or note is made on those plants whose planning consent may have expired due to not being implemented within consented time limits, or the likelihood of them moving from this stage into construction.

 
EfW Sites within UK in Planning
ID Site Name Capacity

53. Enviroparks Hirwaun Generation Site 250kt
59. Bulwell Energy 160kt
60. Coatbridge Renewable Energy Facility 204kt
65. Swindon Energy Plant 70kt
71. North Beck Energy Centre 560kt
77. Houghton Main 260kt
82. Bilsthorpe Energy Centre 96kt
84. Bloomfield Recycling Depot (Re-submission) 180kt
86. The 3Rs Bradford 160kt
87. Gretton Brook Road, Corby 154kt
92. Clydach Refinery 103kt
93. Cornwall Bio Park (Redruth) 80kt
94. Derwenthaugh Ecoparc (resubmission) 90kt
97. Eastleigh 120kt
98. Eastcroft EfW (3rd Line) 140kt
100. Finmere Quarry 60kt
101. Fleetwood Energy Centre 80kt
102. Keighley EfW Plant, Former Gas Works, Aire Valley Road 100kt
103. Rotherham Renewable Energy Centre (Former Templeborough Steel Works) 215kt
104. Fort Industrial Park (Castle Bromwich) 105kt
105. Hams Hall National Distribution Park 150kt
106. Hangmans Lane 50kt
108. Killoch Depot 160kt
109. Kingmoor Park 250kt
110. Kingspan Insulation 240kt
111. Knowsley ERF 80kt
112. Land to the South of Knapton Quarry Landfill Site 110kt
113. Levenseat EfW Phase 2 315kt
117. Melton Waste Park/Solar 21 EfW plant 250kt
118. Moody Lane (Former Acordis site) Resubmission 170kt
120. Northacre RRC 243kt
122. Peterborough Energy Park (Green Energy Parks - Gasification) 350kt
124. Pond Green Energy Park 80kt
128. Southmoor Energy Centre 350kt
130. Greengate EfW Plant 330kt
131. Thames Gateway EfW (Resubmission) 200kt
132. The 3Rs Doncaster 350kt
134. Uskmouth Power Station (Subcoal) 450kt
136. Washwood Heath (resubmission) 128kt
138. Corby Energy Recovery Centre 357kt
139. Tilbury Docks - Phase 2 (EfW) 350kt
141. Garden of England Energy 104kt
142. Haverton Hill (line 6) 200kt
145. Keypoint Industrial Estate 150kt
147. Darwen Energy Recovery Plant 500kt
150. Medworth EFW CHP 626kt
152. Thainstone Inverurie Energy Park ERF 240kt
154. 3Rs EfW Plant, Horsham 180kt
155. Boston Alternative Energy Facility 1000kt
159. Chiltern Green Energy Park 500kt
161. Envirofusion EfW Plant (Alfreton) 5kt
162. EP South Humber Bank Energy Centre 750kt
163. Grundon Circular Technology Park 275kt
167. Hay Hall Bio Power 277kt
171. Llynfi Biomass Power 300kt
172. Longridge Road Energy Centre (Preston) 395kt
176. Protos (Bio-Sustainable Natural Gas) Plot 4 175kt
177. Redcar EfW Plant (South Tees) 350kt
181. Swansea EfW plant 30kt
189. Trostrey Court Farm Barns Clytha Road Trostrey Common Gwehelog (Usk) 42kt
191. Bandeath Industrial Estate, Throsk 60kt
192. Hill Barton Business Park 88kt
193. Magnetic Park Energy Centre 96kt
199. Hightown Quarry EFW 211kt
200. North Hampshire (Alton) 330kt
202. East Midlands Energy Re-Generation Centre (EMERGE) 500kt
203. Immingham 600kt
207. Energy and Resource Park, Kidderminister 75kt
208. Eco Park EFW (Parley) 50kt
213. South Tees Development Corportation/Redcar EFW 450kt
215. Teeside Renewable Energy Plant 333kt
217. Billingham Reach 375kt
220. Berry Lane ERC/Reading Quarry 150kt
221. New Road Billingham EFW 200kt
222. Graythorp Energy Centre 560kt
230. Thornton ERC 120kt
231. Medway Energy Hub 400kt
232. Plymouth EfW Facility 60kt
233. Immingham Railfreight Terminal 320kt


Summary site information collated from a variety of sources
including: Monksleigh [5], Tolvik [6], EA, SEPA, NRW, DEFRA, BEIS
and owner and developer websites

References