Back from the dead

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E.ON UK has returned its gas-fired Killingholme Power Station to full service, two years after the plant was operationally withdrawn.

E.ON UK

, the company that runs Powergen, has returned its Killingholme Power Station to full service in what is believed a world first.

The 900MW station, based in Lincolnshire, was operationally withdrawn in 2002/03 and is believed to be the first gas-fired power station to be completely returned after an extended period out of service.

The move is part of E.ON UK’s strategy to lower its emissions, in line with the Government’s low emissions policy, and as part of the company’s moves to ensure power supplies for its customers for years to come.

Dr Paul Golby, Chief Executive of E.ON UK, said: “We believe this is the first time, certainly in the UK and we believe anywhere in the world, that a gas-fired power station has been returned to service after it was withdrawn from service completely.”

The station’s control system has also been updated so that E.ON UK’s gas-fired Cottam Development Centre (CDC) in Nottinghamshire can be controlled remotely by staff 40 miles away at Killingholme.

Killingholme was the second gas-fired power station to be built in the UK, in 1993, and its return to service will be marked by a special ceremony on September 7.