Commissioning of the £1.3M hydro plant is now underway after eight months of construction and technical challenges. The new 185kw unit will create enough power to meet a third of the electricity needed to run the entire treatment works and save £200,000 a year.
When added to government incentive scheme subsidies it means that the site’s power bill will be cost neutral.
The installation at the treatment works, which supplies some 700,000 customers in the Sunderland, South Tyneside and North Durham area, has been carried out by contractor JN Bentley.
Northumbrian Water already has the biggest hydro plant in England at Kielder Water and other electricity generating assets at Selset and Derwent reservoirs.
