Scotland-based Forth Energy puts plans for £360M, 200-MW biomass CHP plant in Edinburgh's Leith Docks on hold due to local opposition, will do three other biomass projects first in Rosyth, Grangemouth and Dundee, all in Scotland

Bdebbie Garcia

LOS ANGELES , September 8, 2011 (Industry Intelligence) – Due to considerable local opposition, Forth Energy PLC is freezing plans to building a combined heat and power plant fueled with woody biomass at Edinburgh’s Leith Docks in Scotland, reported Scotsman.com on Sept. 7.

The Leith-based company, which is a joint venture between Forth Ports PLC and Scottish and Southern Energy, will make the project the last of four biomass power plants it plans in the region, said Forth Ports CEO Charles Hammond, in a meeting with local politicians.

Forth Energy is considering how to revise its plans for Leith before a final submission, following the more than 1,000 objections the project generated after an initial application was filed with the Scottish government, Scotsman.com reported.

The company plans similar biomass power plants in the Scottish towns of Rosyth, Grangemouth and Dundee. An application for the Rosyth project has already been filed with the Energy Ministry.

The application for the Leith project now won’t be submitted in December, as originally planned, according to the company, said Malcolm Chisholm, a member of the Scottish parliament. Forth Energy wants “more dialogue with the local community,” he said.

Leith City Council is to submit feedback on the project application by Dec. 11, said a spokesperson for the board, reported Scotsman.com.

The Leith application is expected to be revised in “scale and massing” but its operating system is likely to remain the same, said Leith Councilor Gordon Munro, who was not hopeful the project’s opponents would be appeased.

Forth Energy remains in talks with the organizations involved as it continues with the approval process, said a Forth Energy spokesperson, Scotsman.com reported.

Plans call for Forth Energy to spend £360 million (US$575.3 million) to build a 200-megawatt biomass plant in Leith Docks, according to an Aug. 12 article on Scotsman.com that was carried on IndustryIntel.com on the same day.

Opponents have complained that the plant would not be sustainable as most of its feedstock would be imported as wood chips from North America, reported Scotsman.com.

The primary source of this article is Scotsman.com, Edinburgh, Scotland, on Sept. 7, 2011.

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