THE PORT OF TYNE
SITE VISIT 22nd FEBRUARY 2024
On Thursday 22nd February 2024, members of the MHEA had the privilege of embarking on a guided tour of the Biomass Fuel Handling Facility situated at the Port of Tyne on the South Tyneside coast.
Led by Davey Wharrier, Head of Fuel Handling at LPL, along with Sean Hager, (Managing Director), Chris Cotton (Head of Operations) and Billy Readle (Site Manager) of Hargreaves Industrial Services Ltd the tour provided MHEA members with exclusive access to the impressive Bulk Materials Import Facility This project not only prioritised the utmost levels of safety but also delivered tangible commercial advantages, safeguarding and advancing the UK’s power generation sector amidst the imperative global efforts towards climate change mitigation and achieving net-zero emissions.
The evening prior to the visit at the port a networking dinner was held with over 18 Member Companies enjoying the opportunity to discuss what is happening within the industry in a relaxed informal setting.
The conversion of Lynemouth Power Station (LPL) marked one of the most significant engineering endeavours undertaken in the UK in recent memory. Once reliant on coal, the station now stands as a beacon of sustainable energy production, contributing substantially to the nation’s shift towards cleaner, low-carbon power generation.
Under the ownership of LPL and the management of Hargreaves Industrial Services Ltd, the purpose-built fuel handling facilities at the Port of Tyne, alongside those at the Lynemouth site, store approximately 75,000 metric tons and 50,000 metric tons of biomass wood pellets, respectively.
At the Port the material handling is split into 2 halves, namely “Ship Unloading” and “Rail Loading”, 3 x 25,000T capacity slip formed concrete storage silos provide the material buffer between the 2 halves of the materials handling plant.
The ship unloading includes material screening, ferrous extraction, automatic sampling and 5-way route selection. The Rail Loading includes silo emptying technology, belt and train weighing along with rapid rail loading technology capable of filling rail wagons with a total of 1700T of material in 30 minutes whilst the train is moving at 0.5mph through the facility. The Port is handling 100% of LPL’s feedstock which since commissioning totals over 11 million tonnes of fuel – a clear demonstration of confidence in its services.
