NZT Power moves into Wilton Centre
The ambitious £1.5bn clean energy project has taken a 12,000 sq ft office at Redcar’s R&D site, with Technip Energies and Balfour Beatty moving in to advance work on the world’s first commercial scale, gas-fired power station with carbon capture and storage.
Led by joint venture partners BP and Equinor, the Norwegian state-owned energy company, NZT Power (Net Zero Teesside) is also supported by Turner & Townsend, GE Vernova, and technology partner Shell Catalysts & Technologies.
If realised, it will be the UK’s first CO 2 transportation and storage infrastructure project. A development consent order was secured in February 2024. The plant itself will be located on the former Redcar steelworks with an estimated build cost of £833m.
Up to 2m tonnes of CO2 per year could be captured at the plant and transported and permanently stored by the Northern Endurance Partnership, also a partnership between BP and Equinor, with Total Energies holding a 10% stake.
From its base at Wilton Centre, operated by Pioneer Group, Technip Energies will lead a consortium with GE Vernova, alongside construction partner Balfour Beatty, to deliver the Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract for NZT Power and the NEP
onshore Power, Capture and Compression project, a multi-year construction project that aims to accelerate the UK’s journey toward net zero.
Beyond its environmental impact, NZT Power is expected to create and support over 3,000 jobs during the construction phase, delivering long-term economic benefits to Teesside.
Wilton Centre is one of Europe’s largest R&D sites with a 50-year legacy of supporting biomanufacturing, technology, life sciences and the circular economy.
Following recent planning approval, Pioneer Group is set to develop almost 150,000 sq ft of new laboratory, technical, manufacturing and office space within the Teesside Freeport boundary.
Steve Duffield, Wilton Centre’s site director, said: “Wilton Centre has long been a magnet for companies looking to get involved in the green tech industrial revolution here on Teesside, so we’re delighted that Technip Energies and Balfour Beatty have chosen to lay down roots at the Centre and join our thriving ecosystem of businesses tackling human and planetary health challenges.
“As well as driving the UK towards achieving net zero, this exciting project will play a key role in boosting regional economic growth in the North East, creating thousands of employment opportunities.”
Hugh Ferguson, Balfour Beatty delivery director, said: “We are delighted to establish our project offices at the Wilton Centre as part of the NZT Power-NEP project together with our partners.
“This landmark initiative represents a defining moment in the UK’s energy transition, and we are proud to bring our construction expertise to help deliver what’s set to become the country’s first commercial scale, gas-fired power station with carbon capture.
“Being based here before moving over to our site, and being able to keep space here, keeps us close to site and to the community, ensuring we can maximise local opportunities, create jobs, and leave a lasting legacy of skills and innovation in Teesside.”
