Plans revealed for up to £800m investment in carbon capture at Yorkshire's Ferrybridge site

The move would see Ferrybridge, already the UK’s largest 'energy from waste' site, become one of the largest carbon removal projects in Europe, driving jobs and greener futures.

Project leaders say it would accelerate decarbonisation in the region, while supporting over 200 jobs across the supply chain during the development phase.

Mike Maudsley, chief executive of enfinium, said: “To deliver a net zero carbon economy, the UK needs to find a way to produce carbon removals, or negative emissions, at scale.

"Installing carbon capture at our Ferrybridge site would make it one of Europe’s biggest carbon removal projects.

"All this while decarbonising unrecyclable waste, diverting it from climate-damaging landfill, and supporting the green economy in West Yorkshire and the wider community.”

Company enfinium is a major British operator which converts energy from waste, in a process that means carbon can be stored rather than released back into the atmosphere.

But while the Climate Change Committee has made it clear such measures are needed to achieve a Net Zero economy for the UK, there have been questions about how feasible it would be to deliver at scale.

Now the company's ambitions, revealed today, would see up to £800m invested over the lifecycle of the project, it confirmed, with the technology set to be installed at Ferrybridge 1 and 2 facility in Knottingley.

Once operational, it would capture around 1.2m tonnes of carbon dioxide every year, a spokesperson for enfinium said, including over 600,000 tonnes of durable, high-quality carbon removals.

This would be equivalent to taking the carbon emissions of every household in Manchester out of the atmosphere, experts suggest.

It could also generate over 90 MW of baseload, homegrown carbon negative power, with proposals to be put forward for Government grant support. Planning consents would be sought from next year.

The company currently has four sites in the UK including Ferrybridge 1 and 2, with a new facility set to open at the site of the former coal-fired Skelton Grange power station in Leeds in 2025.

Installing carbon capture – and the technology to make it happen – on energy from waste plants is “vital”, the company has said, to help decarbonise the millions of tonnes of unrecyclable waste that the UK will continue to produce in the coming decades.

Mr Maudsley, originally from Halifax and a former group operations director at Drax, has previously spoken of his vision for change, telling The Yorkshire Post "we have to be part of a solution".

And Olivia Powis, UK director of the Carbon Capture and Storage Association (CCSA), said the move would also be a jobs driver for the region.

She added: "enfinium's planned £800 million investment in CCS at Ferrybridge marks a critical milestone for carbon removal and clean power.

"For the UK to host one of Europe’s largest carbon removal projects, it demonstrates we are really leading the way in our journey towards a net zero future.

"enfinium's strategic vision has the potential to sustain and create good local jobs and transform the facility in West Yorkshire."