Work has begun on a new 840MW combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT) plant in North Lincolnshire.
The £350 million Keadby 2 project is being developed by SSE and built by Siemens, which will also service the power station under a 15-year contract.
Once complete, SSE says it will be the most fuel-efficient CCGT plant on the power grid, converting 63 per cent of the heat produced from burning gas into electricity.
The power station will be constructed alongside the company’s existing 735MW CCGT plant at Keadby and will feature a “first-of-a-kind” H-class turbine supplied by Siemens.
According to SSE, the project will support the growth of renewables by providing backup generation to fill gaps in output.
The construction of the power station will start in January 2019, with the first turbine components scheduled to arrive during early 2020. Preparatory work to demolish the remnants of the old coal-fired plant at Keadby is now underway.
“SSE has a strong presence in this area with both the operational Keadby 1 power station and the neighbouring Keadby windfarm,” said SSE project manager Mark Birley.
“Breaking ground for this project signals an exciting next step for us and we look forward to working with Siemens to deliver Keadby 2.”
Siemens managing director for power and gas Wesley Tivnen said: “This station will mean the UK can move away from coal-fired power and still have synchronous generating capacity on the grid, to complement intermittent renewable generation.
“If the UK is to meet decarbonisation targets and keep the lights on, we’ll need to see a mix of technologies used to power the grid.”
RWE recently froze the development of the proposed Tilbury Energy Centre in Essex which was expected to include a 2.5GW CCGT power station, a 300MW open-cycle gas turbine plant and a 100MW energy storage facility.
The company said the project was no longer economically viable to due market conditions and costs.