DECC announces new biomass power projects

April 23, 2014, London, England – Eight major renewable
electricity projects were unveiled by the Department of Energy & Climate
Change in the U.K., including coal-to-biomass conversion projects and one dedicated
biomass project.

The three biomass projects are:

• The 645 MW Drax Unit #1 biomass conversion in
  Selby, North Yorkshire
• The 420 MW Lynemouth biomass conversion in
  Ashington, Northumberland
• The 299 MWMGT Power Limited’s Teesside dedicated
  biomass with combined heat and power project in Middlesbrough

By 2020, the eight projects are expected to provide up to
£12 billion of private sector investment, supporting 8,500 jobs, and they could
add a further 4.5GW of low-carbon electricity to Britain’s energy mix (or
around 4% of capacity), generating enough clean electricity to power over three
million homes.

Once built, the successful projects are expected to
contribute around 15TWh or 14% of the renewable electricity we expect to come
forward by 2020, helping to put the UK well on the way to meeting the UK’s
renewable energy target. They will also reduce emissions by 10 MtCO2 per year
compared to fossil fuel power generation.

The projects have been offered under Contracts for
Difference (CfD), which form part of Government’s world leading Electricity
Market Reform programme. They include offshore wind farms, coal to biomass
conversions and a dedicated biomass plant with combined heat and power.