Building UK’s first industrial Carbon Capture and Usage plant
Having announced the carbon capture and utilisation project in July 2019 and commenced on site in late March 2020, the project is now nearing completion.
So far, the project has taken 90,000 hours of onsite time with over 30 different contractors all playing key roles. From High Voltage specialists, process engineers and specialist equipment installers to operations management, 1,000 tonne crane operators and groundworks contractors, the complex project has needed a diverse and select group to ensure it is delivered. Coupled with this, components to build the plant have been sourced from across the globe and shipped from 50 different countries including China, Turkey, Belgium, Denmark as well as from across the UK.
The construction of the new plant has been carefully choreographed around live manufacturing operations on the Winnington site. Tata Chemicals Europe’s (TCE) combined heat and power plant, from which the carbon dioxide will be captured from flue gas, needed to operate as normal to generate steam and electricity for TCE’s manufacturing operations. The sodium bicarbonate plant on the Winnington site continued to make high grade product used in the manufacture of medical treatments and food.
Delivery of the CCU project has also had to fit alongside the largest demolition project in the UK in the past 12 months with the removal of the decommissioned 33m high calcium carbonate plant and 65m high kiln building that was part of the old Winnington soda ash plant.
Working with TCE to drive the co-ordination and delivery of all components of the project, Revolution Projects have provided construction management services with a “can do” attitude ensuring the complex construction of the carbon capture plan is safely undertaken without disruption to live operations on the Winnington site. Revolution Projects knowledge and expertise has supported the TCE team in maintaining a high standard of Health and Safety performance despite the challenging working environment. To date, there have been no lost time injuries and the impact of COVID-19 pandemic has only resulted in limited disruption to the project.
Phill Grocott, Revolution Projects, said:
“The Tata Chemicals Europe CCU project is a ground-breaking project in the UK and we’re delighted to have been able to support TCE to deliver this project. Industrial projects of this size always have different challenges like working in alongside the live manufacturing operations. We’ve worked closely with TCE, integrating into their project team, to help ensure safe and timely progress.”
Stewart Prentice, TCE Project Manager, said:
“Revolution Projects have been excellent partners in the execution of this pathfinding and complex project. They have worked very closely with the TCE project team to deliver timely, effective construction management; and been instrumental in the project achieving a safety performance to be proud of.”