Hendry gives go-ahead to £600m power plant in Essex

Energy Minister Charles Hendry will today approve InterGen’s proposals to construct a £600m gas power plant in Essex.

The new power station will comprise two ‘combined cycle gas turbine’ units, each around 450MW in capacity. This would bring the total new capacity consented by the government since May 2010 to 5,456MW – enough to power more than seven million homes.

The CCGT plant will take about three years to build, generating around 600 jobs during the construction period.

Hendry, who will visit the proposed site later today, said: “The Gateway Energy Centre will play an important role in providing secure electricity supplies to around a million homes across the South-east, supplying heat and power to the neighbouring London Gateway Port and Logistics and Business Park, and bringing jobs and investment to Essex.

“With a quarter of our electricity generating capacity shutting down over the next ten years as older plants close, new power stations like Coryton will play a crucial part in the country’s energy mix as we make a move towards a low carbon economy.

“There is also a major opportunity in the long-term for gas power stations like this to be fitted with abatement technology.

“This station will be built carbon capture ready, which means that eventually CO₂ emissions from the plant could be captured and transported for storage offshore.

“I am particularly pleased to see the proposals for 11 skilled apprenticeships and the training and vocational facilities at the site, and that InterGen will be working with the community to make sure local people are given an opportunity to benefit from the construction and operation of the plant.”