Fife Council has said the RWE npower renewables' Markinch Biomass Combined Heat and Power (CHP) plant has reached an important milestone.

The plant, which is situated on the site of the Tullis Russell paper mill, received its first wood delivery this week ahead of its completion.

A total of 700 tonnes of virgin wood has been fed into the fuel handling system as a test forming part of the 'cold commissioning' process.

Trials are progressing towards commissioning of the boiler on solid fuel and achieving full operation later this year.

The biomass CHP plant will replace the existing coal fired power station on the Tullis Russell site and will provide the paper mill with its electricity and steam requirements. Excess electricity generation will be fed into the local grid. The facility will use a combination of end-of-life recovered wood as its main fuel source, topped up with virgin wood, and will provide Tullis Russell with an environmentally friendly source of renewable energy.

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The local authority has said the plant will deliver many benefits as not only will it represent a reduction in fossil carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 250,000 tonnes per annum, but by supplying renewable heat and electricity to Tullis Russell as well as electricity to the local grid, the facility will significantly contribute to Scotland's renewable energy generation targets.

Andy Smith, Project Manager of RWE npower renewables said: "This is a really exciting stage of the project and is testament to the great progress the team are making. For the first time, wood will be taken into the silos and through the system for testing purposes. More than a million man hours have been invested in the construction so far and it is satisfying for all concerned to see the early stages of sustainable power generation."

The plant received a further boost earlier this month, after it received permission to produce up to 65MW of output, as opposed to 49.9MW.

The change has not affected the size or design of the buildings and the facility will not require more fuel than proposed in the planning consent.

(JP/MH)