px Group, the operator of several critical infrastructure sites in the UK and Europe, has announced it has secured an Operations and Maintenance (O&M) contract for the Tees Renewable Energy Plant (Tees REP). The contract marks px Group’s further expansion into the biomass power generation industry.
Located in Tees Valley, one of the world’s largest purpose-built pellet biomass power plants has the capacity to generate 299 MW of energy, which is enough to power 600,000 homes, equivalent to nearly all households in the Teesside area.
The plant will play a critical role in bolstering energy security on both a regional and national level by ensuring a reliable baseload power supply, which other intermittent renewables like solar and wind cannot guarantee.
With px Group overseeing O&M across the plant, the Tees REP will strongly benefit from px Group’s industry-leading expertise in biomass plant management, supported by its proven UK operational leadership at Holbrook Biomass Plant in Sheffield and Widmerpool Biomass Plant in Nottingham.
The award of the O&M partnership follows a preceding collaboration with px Engineering, which provided consultancy and expertise during the plant commissioning phase.
This biomass venture secures hundreds of direct and indirect jobs supporting regional economic growth and employment.
'It is a landmark moment for px Group to take on the operations and maintenance of the largest new-build biomass plant in the world and a transformative moment for the entire regional energy sector,' said Dave Thompson, Chief Operating Officer at px Group. 'We are looking forward to strengthening our expertise in this area and bringing our partner the highest standards of safety, efficiency, and reliability.'
Ian Coxon, CEO at MGT, owner of Tees REP, added: 'We are thrilled to partner with px Group as they take over the operations and maintenance of this landmark project.
'Its extensive expertise in safely managing large-scale green energy projects, combined with its proven success in operating other biomass sites, makes it the ideal partner to ensure the plant runs at peak efficiency and further enhances energy security and resilience for the UK.'
px Group is a portfolio company of Ara Partners, a global private equity firm that is decarbonizing the industrial economy.
Source: px Group
