The UK’s first wood-fired biomass renewable energy station is on track to start producing energy in 2006.

The £24m plant, which is being built at Margam near Port Talbot, will use up to 100,000 tonnes of timber a year.

The project is being developed by Western Bio Energy, a division of Western Log Group, and it has the full backing of Forestry Commission Wales which will supply wood fibre to the plant.

Material will also be sourced from wood co-products. Robert James, managing director at Western Log Group, said: “Each year in Wales some 250,000 tonnes of wood co-products have to be handled and appropriately disposed of.

&#8220The new biomass plant has the capacity to consume around 100,000 tonnes each year, offering a real commercial lifeline to companies looking for cost effective and environmentally friendly ways to use timber by-products”

Robert James, managing director at Western Log Group

“The new biomass plant has the capacity to consume around 100,000 tonnes of that total each year, offering a real commercial lifeline to a whole host of companies looking for cost effective and environmentally friendly ways to use timber by-products.”

Any companies interested in supplying wood co-products to the project should contact Mr James on 01639 896715.