Operator confirmed for controversial incinerator

Tees Valley Energy Recovery Facility will take waste from seven councils

An operator has been confirmed for a controversial incinerator set to burn up to 450,000 tonnes of household waste a year.

The Tees Valley Energy Recovery Facility (TVERF) is due to be built on land at Teesworks, near Grangetown, Redcar and Viridor was the only bidder remaining after the lengthy procurement process.

The company will be tasked with designing, building and financing the incinerator on behalf of Darlington, Durham, Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Redcar and Cleveland and Stockton councils.

A number of councillors along with anti-incineration groups have been opposed to the scheme both on environmental and financial grounds.

The TVERF will burn non-recyclable waste from the local authorities, creating electricity for the national grid.

The only other bidder for the project, Green Recovery Projects Ltd was removed from the process, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Viridor was chosen by TVERF's board, made up of representatives from the seven councils involved.

The authorities will pay a fee for the service provided over the course of a contract which could eventually extend up to 40 years.

A permit to operate the site was granted last month by the Environment Agency.

Denise McGuckin, from Hartlepool Council, said Viridor was a "highly-experienced" operator with a record for the running of energy-from-waste facilities.

She said the tender process had been "long running and complex" but had secured best value for money.

Construction is expected to start next year with the plant operating by 2030.