First chips to wood-burning plant

It is hoped the chips will come from local producers

The first deliveries of wood chips have been made to a renewable energy power station on Teesside.

The Wilton 10 biomass power station is being built and operated by SembCorp Utilities UK Ltd and is expected to come on line in summer 2007.

It says the use of renewable and recycled resources means reduced emissions of carbon dioxide when compared with fossil fuels.

It will be fired by wood chip, forestry logs, sawmill chip and recycled timber.

Greenergy Bioenergy Limited said deliveries were now under way of the first 1,000 wet tonnes of short rotation coppice (SRC) willow wood chip to the plant.

It will consume 55,000 wet tonnes of SRC every year, which is an energy crop grown by farmers.

Greenergy has been acquiring stock from a number of suppliers across the UK as well as working with Coppice Resources Ltd to offer contracts for the growth of SRC to farmers operating within a 50-mile radius of Wilton 10.