Eversheds advised Eco2 Ltd and Iceni Energy Ltd on the sale of 44.2MW straw-powered biomass project in Snetterton, East Anglia.

The Snetterton Renewable Energy plant will be primarily fuelled using locally sourced straw and will generate enough electricity to meet the needs of approximately 82,000 homes. It will also result in an annual CO2 emissions reduction of approximately 300,000 tonnes.

The plant will result in an £11m annual investment in the East Anglian agricultural economy from fuel supply contracts by sourcing all straw from within the region where possible. In addition, it is expected that the Snetterton Biomass Plant will provide up to 36 permanent jobs when operational, plus a further 50 jobs in fuel transportation.

Eversheds was instructed on all the corporate and project aspects of the transaction, advising the shareholders on the sale of the project. The team was led by Michelle T Davies, Iwan Walters and James Trafford with support from Andrew Lord, John McLean, Adam Hooton, Edward Ellaby, Matt Gibbs, Jean-Pascal Boutin and Charles Reynard.

Iwan Walters, said:

“As a firm we have advised on nearly all of the projects within the dedicated biomass capacity in the UK. It has been a pleasure to have worked with Eco2 and Iceni on this very important transaction for the dedicated biomass sector and we wish the project every success for the future.”

Dr David Williams, CEO of Eco2, commented:

“This is a significant deal for the UK biomass industry, and the second sale Eco2 has completed with BWSC PCL on a sustainable-scale straw-fired biomass plant. We have a longstanding relationship with BWSC, who we also worked with on the sale of Wales’ first commercial-scale biomass plant in Port Talbot in 2006 – the Western Wood Energy Plant.”

“As a company, we are successfully operating on a global scale, and this latest deal is the third of its kind in the past three years, totalling £490m. The sale reaffirms Eco2’s prominent position as the leading biomass developer in the UK.”

Christian Skakkebæk, Senior Partner in Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, added:

“There are great advantages in a more direct cooperation between financial and industrial partners in the energy sector. It is not always easily established, but this cooperation is a good example of how it can be done, and benefits all parties involved.”