MGT Teesside Biomass Power Station (Tees Renewable Energy Plant - TeesREP)
Teesport, Redcar and Cleveland, North East England · 2016–2022 (Preliminary construction started by 2016, operational by 2022) [1] [2] [3] · £650 million (build cost) [1]
The judgement call
Account-gated at launchThe project received approval for UK state aid from the European Union. It secured emergency funding in 2023 to address cashflow issues, highlighting the financial challenges associated with large-scale renewable energy projects. [6]
Key engineering challenges
Constructing the world's largest purpose-built biomass power plant, requiring specialized engineering for biomass handling and combustion. [5] - Ensuring a reliable baseload power supply from biomass to the GB National Grid. [4] - Managing the complex logistics of sourcing and supplying biomass fuel on a large scale. [5] - Overcoming construction delays, including those caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. [3]
Project facts
- Client / owner
- MGT Teesside Limited (developed by MGT Power, owned by Macquarie)
- Lead contractor
- px Group (O&M contract) [4]
- Lead designers
- —
- Project type
- new build
- Scale
- 299 MW capacity; produces 2.3 TWh of low carbon electricity annually; powers 600,000 homes. World's largest purpose-built biomass power plant. [1] [5]
- Disciplines
- mechanical; electrical; process; civil; environmental; project management
- Standards & frameworks
- UK environmental regulations, EU state aid rules.
Sources: MGT Teesside: An Introduction and Brief History (https://www.mgtteesside.co.uk/blog/an-introduction-and-brief-history) [1] - Biomass Magazine: Finnvera to provide financing for MGT Teesside biomass plant (https://biomassmagazine.com/articles/finnvera-to-provide-financing-for-mgt-teesside-biomass-plant-13687) [2] - Biomass Magazine: COVID-19 delays construction of 299 MW biomass power plant in UK (https://biomassmagazine.com/articles/covid-19-delays-construction-of-299-mw-biomass-power-plant-in-uk-16922) [3] - px Group: px Group Wins O&M Contract for Teesside Biomass Power Plant (https://www.pxlimited.com/news/px-group-wins-om-contract-for-teesside-biomass-power-plant/) [4] - TeesREP: TeesREP Power Station - Biomass Power Plant (https://teesrep.co.uk/) [5] - Bioenergy News: Macquarie-owned Teesside biomass plant secures £80m emergency funding (https://www.bioenergy-news.com/news/macquarie-owned-teesside-biomass-plant-secures-80m-emergency-funding/) [6]