A CGI of the carbon capture and utilisation plant
Hawkins Construction (Northern) is to build the UK’s largest carbon capture and utilisation plant in Northwich, Cheshire.
The £16.7m project for Tata Chemicals Europe (TCE) will remove carbon dioxide from TCE’s combined heat and power plant emissions, and will serve as a demonstration project for the viability of industrial-scale carbon capture technology.
The carbon dioxide gas removed by the plant will be purified and liquefied for use in the manufacture of sodium bicarbonate.
Hawkins, which has a track record of working in the pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturing sector for clients such as AstraZeneca and British Salt, will act as principal contractor, with responsibility for project management of the CCU construction.
The civil works will involve piling to a depth of 13m to prepare the ground for process equipment installation.
The steel works for a dedicated substation for the CCU plant and the liquefaction building that will house the process equipment that will liquify the captured and purified carbon dioxide ready for storage and use.
Hawkins Construction’s commercial director Ben Birchall said: “We’re delighted to have been appointed to deliver this high-profile project on behalf of Tata Chemicals Europe. It is a strategically important project for all stakeholders; to the UK on its pathway to net zero emissions and for Tata as the company aims to reduce emissions and provide a critical raw material. This project is a major win for Hawkins, as it supports our expansion and demonstrates our ability to deliver clean growth projects on behalf of our clients.
“We’ve been looking to build our project portfolio in the clean growth and chemicals sector for a number of years, and this venture is the culmination of this effort. There is a stringent timeline to this project, and I’m confident that our highly experienced team will deliver in time and within budget, whilst also ensuring that the health and safety of all those on the site continues to be of paramount importance.”
Ladan Iravanian, project director at TCE said: “We first worked with Hawkins in 2018 at our British Salt manufacturing site. The project they completed for us at this time was implemented extremely well, and we are pleased to be working with Ben and the Hawkins team again as we deliver this hugely exciting carbon capture and utilisation project. The project continues to be delivered with onsite work handled by Hawkins and is accelerating as we near the installation of the major CCU process equipment.
“As we are the UK’s only manufacturer of sodium bicarbonate, an important ingredient in food manufacturing and a critical component of some pharmaceutical products, it is a great credit to the combined efforts of all our team and supply chain that construction on this project continues safely during the covid-19 pandemic.”
