Plans To Replace Ageing City Incinerator

20 February 2026
ShareSave


Richard PriceWest Midlands


Plans to replace an ageing incinerator with a more effective one are because of be analyzed by city leaders.


A brand-new energy recovery plant, for Hanford, near Stoke City's Bet365 Stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, would power the equivalent of about 50,000 homes, the authority stated.


They added it might also produce a "considerable" income which might be reinvested into regional recycling and net no plans.


The agreement for the present incinerator at Hanford ends in March 2030, when it will be 35 years of ages and at the end of its functional life.


The job might also be a major contributor to the city's district heating network to provide public buildings with low-carbon heating and warm water, powered by geothermal energy, a representative stated.


The city board's cabinet is being asked to start an official procurement process to find an organisation to partner with, who could invest, style, construct and run the new facility.


That procedure was anticipated to take 18 months, with the proposed center arranged to be up and running in 2032.


Cabinet member Finlay Gordon-McCusker said the present center had burnt more than 4 million tonnes of rubbish since it opened in 1995, providing a "sustainable option" to landfill.


The council wished to consider an "entrepreneurial" technique to running the center, he included.


Waste increase


This would include a more substantial upfront investment than other options, Gordon-McCusker said.


But it was expected that the authority would make a profit from the scheme in the longer term, he declared, through the sale of and heat along with costs charged to other organisations using the website for their waste.


The new website could deal with about 230,000-290,000 tonnes of waste each year, which would be an increase of between 10-38% of present levels.


A public consultation will run throughout March and April.