Little Barford power station gets greener after £100m upgrade

The Little Barford Power Station at Gallow Hill, south of St. Neots in Bedfordshire, has recently been given a £100million upgrade to be more environmentally friendly. The power station is part of RWE Generation and was opened in 1996. At full capacity could generate 680MW of electricity – enough to power half a million homes.

Last year, two gas turbines and control system were replaced and its boilers, steam turbines, generators and other plant components have been upgraded to extend the life of the plant to 2025. The upgrade has led to increased fuel efficiency and generation capacity, meaning an additional 30,000 homes can be powered by the plant. It has also reduced emissions, with nitrogen oxide levels dropping by 40 percent and save the equivalent of 118,000 tons of carbon dioxide each year.

Kevin Lindley, power station manager said, “The new gas turbines are showing lower than expected fuel consumption and CO2 emissions per unit of power generated. We look forward to generating power for the East of England and the rest of the UK for many years to come.”