Natural Power, a leading renewable energy consultancy and service provider, has secured planning consent on behalf of Agile Energy for a new energy recovery facility to be built on the site of the former Inverurie paper mill at Kirkwood Commercial Park in Aberdeenshire.

Natural Power undertook the planning submission, the environmental impact report (EIA); including the hydrology, geology and hydrogeology, ecology and ornithology studies and assessment, landscape and visual impact assessment, noise assessment, air quality impact assessment, traffic and transport assessment; and the heat and power plan for the site. The team also handled liaison with the planning authority and SEPA.

Additionally, Natural Power’s renewable heat team provided full technical support on the heat recovery, best available technology (BAT) review, and emissions modelling for the application.

Alf Robertson, Agile Energy managing director, said: “The Thainstone Energy Recovery plant incorporates world-leading design concepts and technology and we were delighted to have Natural Power in the team driving a successful conclusion to the important milestone of planning permission.

“We have been impressed by the professionalism of the team at Natural Power and the equally impressive professionalism and performance of the planning service of Aberdeenshire Council and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency.”

Once complete, the new facility, which forms the first phase of the planned Thainstone Energy Park development, will be capable of generating up to 35MW of electricity to be exported to the national grid, and up to 80MW of heat, which would be provided via a district heating network to the local area under future development plans.

The plant includes an extensive waste sorting system to remove recyclable material before the waste is processed into fuel for the plant. Up to 240,000 tonnes of commercial waste per year will be brought to the site from businesses across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray.

Natural Power provides a range of planning and permitting related services right the way through an asset’s life. The planning department brings together qualified planners with project managers and a range of technical specialists to support clients during their projects.