Cargill and Mersey Docks and Harbour Company

The Port of Liverpool CHP scheme started commercial operation in March 2004, supplying both the steam and electricity requirements of Cargill plc and electricity only to the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company (MDHC) and its tenants on the docks.

Cargill operates two processing plants and in addition to considerable electrical power requirements these plants also have significant steam demands.

Cargill's key activities are food processing and distribution, commodity trading and financial services and employs approximately 6000 people in the UK.

MDHC was formed in 1857 and today employs 1,200 people in the UK. It operates and maintains the port facilities on the Rivers Mersey and Medway, providing cargo handling in the process. Navigation and conservation of the ports of Liverpool and Medway is also core to its business activities.

After a review of their energy requirements it was concluded that both Cargill and MDHC would benefit from the installation of a combined heat and power (CHP) scheme, which would meet their current and future energy requirements as well as help to reduce their emissions. Construction of the CHP plant, situated at the Port of Liverpool began in April 2001.

Owned and operated by E.ON UK, it is capable of meeting the energy requirements of the two companies replacing the older less efficient steam raising plant at Cargill's sites. It produces both steam and electrical power by means of modern, clean and efficient gas turbine technology resulting in an improvement in air quality.

The scheme consists of a 30MWe Rolls-Royce RB211 gas turbine exhausting into a supplementary/auxiliary fired heat recovery boiler and three package boilers on standby, each capable of producing up to 28 tonnes of steam per hour.