EDF Energy has been granted a development consent order by business and energy secretary Alok Sharma to build a 299MW gas peaking plant at its West Burton site in Nottinghamshire.
The site already hosts the 2GW West Burton A coal-fired power station and the 1.3GW West Burton B combined-cycle gas turbine plant. EDF has received permission to build five open-cycle gas turbines as part of the West Burton C project.
The Planning Inspectorate received an application from EDF in April 2019 and commenced an examination the following month. The body completed the process in July 2020, recommending that the project be approved by the secretary of state.
EDF revealed in April that it is reviewing the future of West Burton A beyond the expiration of its existing capacity market contracts in September 2021. It is one of just three coal-fired power stations still operating in Great Britain – the others being Drax and Uniper’s Ratcliffe-on-Soar.
Earlier this week, EDF announced plans to build a 49.9MW solar farm near Bramford in Suffolk. The company said the Tye Lane project will underpin the installation electric vehicle charging infrastructure nearby.
Mark Vyvyan-Robinson, director of solar and onshore wind development for EDF Renewables, said: “This is an excellent site for a solar farm, which is suitably sunny and with a nearby grid connection. EDF Renewables is an experienced renewables developer and Tye Lane is one of the first of a number of solar projects we have planned in the UK.
“This project will enable us to contribute to the UK’s green economic recovery from Covid-19 and help the country reach its net zero targets.”