Avonmouth ERF Facility
Viridor and CNIM have recently announced the handover of the £252m Avonmouth Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) site from contractors CNIM to Viridor in December 2020.
The plant, which is currently receiving non-recyclable waste including from Somerset Waste Partnership (up to 120,000 tonnes) and the West of England Waste Partnership (120,000 tonnes), has been designed to divert 320,000 tonnes of this residual waste away from landfill. The ERF will also generate up to 307GWh of electricity annually which will power the facility itself and export enough energy to power the equivalent of 84,000 homes.
SYSTRA, have been the civils design lead on the Avonmouth ERF project for over three-years. In this time, we have delivered the detailed design for the structural, architectural, highways & drainage, environmental and the electrical & mechanical services throughout the building. Initially, these works were delivered to Clugston, and later CNIM for the delivery of the outstanding design works, and to support with any additional design works. SYSTRA are pleased to confirm the completion of our design commission, following the completion of the construction works. SYSTRA continue to support CNIM with the remaining Post Construction BREEAM accreditation (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method), which follows the completion of the main works and handover into operational use.
The construction site has remained open throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, implementing the required government guidelines around social distancing for construction.
Viridor CEO Kevin Bradshaw said the company was pleased to have achieved this important milestone following other significant achievements at the site, including the first export of electricity to the grid in July.
Mickey Green
Somerset Waste Partnership Managing Director
"This facility is another important piece in the Somerset waste management puzzle. While we remain focussed on reduction, reuse and recycling; having a means to ‘repurpose’ waste that cannot be recycled, rather than sending it to landfill, is a great leap forward.
The handover is a great achievement and a milestone in our ongoing work with Viridor and other partners to decarbonise the county’s residual waste."
Iain Thomas
SYSTRA’s project lead
"I’ve been in control of this scheme for circa 18-months, taking over from James Xieilleon. It has been a challenging yet rewarding scheme, as we have witnessed the facility emerge from the ground, developing into a prominent structure on the Avonmouth skyline. I would like to thank the team for their continued commitment to the delivery of this project through a challenging period."