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CHP gets glowing report

The energy produced by power plants that provide both heat and electricity could be almost tripled in the UK, according to an analysis of nine industrial sites.

Combined heat and power (CHP) is seen as more efficient than conventional power stations because it uses heat that is normally wasted, sending it on to industrial or domestic users.

A report by Poyry Energy Consulting for Greenpeace said additional CHP energy generation at the nine sites could meet the energy needs of more than two-thirds of UK homes and match half the nation's natural gas imports.

At present, some 5.5GW of electricity is produced by CHP plants.

The report said that figure could grow to 16GW more, the equivalent of eight nuclear power stations.

Greenpeace said the increased efficiency would cut UK CO2 emissions by ten million tonnes a year.

The sites in question include the ConocoPhillips and Total refineries on the Humber estuary, which is already the site of one of the biggest CHP units in Europe, as well as the Petroplus refinery at Coryton, chemical and manufacturing facilities at Wilton on Teesside, the Stanlow manufacturing complex at Ellesmere Port, the Ineos refinery and chemical plant at Grangemouth and the ExxonMobil refinery at Fawley.

Tim Warham, principal consultant at Poyry, said: "We were surprised at the large technical potential for industrial combined heat and power we encountered. Provided the policy framework is right, CHP could make a huge contribution to securing power supplies for UK."

The CHP generated in the UK has nearly doubled in the past decade, from 3.68GW in 1998 to 5.55GW in 2006.

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