Electricity needs supplied
December 1st 2004

A new energy centre built, operated and maintained under an agreement with Dalkia will provide AstraZeneca’s major pharmaceutical manufacturing site at Macclesfield with the benefit of environmentally friendly generated power

The new energy centre incorporates a 23MW combined heat and power (CHP) plant that provides all the electricity and heat for the site. Officially opened by David Hyde, AstraZeneca Vice President for Safety Health and Environment (SHE), Engineering and Purchasing, the new plant meets all current environmental requirements and has already gained ISO14001 environment accreditation.

The two companies have worked together to develop the scheme which Dalkia has installed and commissioned and will operate under contract. In addition to generation of the site’s electricity and steam, Dalkia manages refrigeration, compressed air, mains and process water supplies as well as nitrogen gas distribution.

Consistent with AstraZeneca’s policy to economise on the use of natural resources, CHP is widely accepted as the most efficient method of generating electricity using fossil fuels and is also in line with the UK Government’s drive to meet its environmental targets under the Kyoto protocol. The new plant will help to reduce national carbon dioxide emissions by up to 39 000 tonnes per year, by using waste heat from electricity generation to raise steam for manufacturing processes and for heating purposes.

Specifically built to be very quiet during operation, the plant also limits any noise emissions.

The new combined cycle plant is designed to be highly efficient and flexible, with electricity being generated from both a gas turbine and a steamdriven turbine. It is capable of operating independently of the National Grid should this be required. Also, it is capable of exporting power to other AstraZeneca sites via the national distribution network.

The plant will supply all the electricity and steam requirements at AstraZeneca’s Macclesfield site and will allow for future production demand increases. Electricity is generated from a 13MW gas turbine and a 10MW steam turbine providing 23MW total capacity.

A 40 tonne per hour waste heat boiler, and two 30 tonne per hour boilers provide the vital steam for the production processes. Following a 15-month construction phase, Dalkia are operating and maintaining the energy centre as well as all other central utility plant and distribution systems at the Macclesfield site.

This investment represents a significant step forward in the development of the site at Macclesfield whilst at the same time improving environmental performance.

AstraZeneca UK Manufacturing Sites Manager, David Gartside said,“This CHP plant is a significant step forward in the development of the Macclesfield site and it provides a modern solution to our energy requirements for the foreseeable future, whilst at the same time improving environmental and economic performance.”

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