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We live in a land that is ready for the seeds of the future and within a mere two years we can begin to harvest the fruit of those seeds. Because generating electricity means generating progress and prosperity. Showing respect for our environment at all times.
That is why a Combined Cycle Plant has been chosen. It is the cleanest and most efficient option for generating electricity at competitive prices. A plant that will bear good fruit for our land.
   

 

ESB is the Irish state-owned company responsible for generating and distributing electricity in the Republic of Ireland. Thus, the people of Ireland in fact own it. ESB wishes to contribute, in the name of the Irish people, to progress in the Basque Country in much the same way as it has contributed to that of Ireland throughout the past 70 years. Thus strengthening the ties that have traditionally united both peoples. In this sense, ESB as a state-owned company has a track record of consulting with the local residents wherever it is present, so as to build further cultural, sporting and social links with the community. This will also apply in the case of Amorebieta-Etxano.

The guarantee of 20 years experience

ESB has been developing natural-gas-fired Combined Cycle Plants all over the world for more than 20 years as, time and again, this has shown itself to be the most efficient, cleanest and most environmentally-friendly way of generating electricity. In fact, ESB manages 3 Combined Cycle Plants in Ireland and is currently developing a fourth in Dublin itself, while a fifth is soon to be built in Northern Ireland. Besides, it manages 10 others in different parts of the world. It is now its intention to contribute, in line with Basque Government energy policy, to greater and much needed autonomy in electricity in the Basque Country through the BIZKAIA ENERGÍA project for a Combined Cycle Plant in Amorebieta-Etxano. A new experience where the Spanish State is concerned.

   
   
Energy autonomy  
. At present the Basque Country imports 80% of the electricity it consumes. This is far too much and means extra costs for our country. We now have the opportunity to generate our own electricity in a way that is cleaner and much kinder to the environment.  
   
Competitive electricity prices  
The building of a Combined Cycle Plant will foster competition in the electricity sector, thus favouring a reduction in the existing high electricity prices. Eventually this will benefit both domestic and industrial consumers  
   
Atraccting imvesting  
The reduction in the price of electricity and the enhanced quality of supply provided by the Combined Cycle Plant will attract more inward investment and will encourage the setting up of more businesses, leading to the creation of more jobs. The project itself is a foreign investment the people of Ireland are making in the Basque Country to the value of 65,000 milli  
   
   
Direct employment  
The construction of the new plant will provide jobs for 500 people and, when finished, the management and operation involved will be in the hands of a staff of 50 skilled technicians. Besides this, the plant's maintenance needs will give rise to further employment. The benefits of an investment of this kind can also be measured in terms of employment and quality of life for all. Not only for Amorebieta-Etxano and its surroundings, but also for Biscay and, in the final analysis, for the whole of the Basque Country. .  
   
Indirect employment  
Apart from that created by direct service contracts with the Plant, the attraction of inward investment will foster the setting-up of new companies, with a consequent increase in new jobs.  
   
A boostfor the services sector and hotels  
Hotels, businesses and services in general will reap benefit from the frequent visits made by significant numbers of people each year to a Plant that will be a model of technology, efficiency and respect for the environment.  
   
Additional revenue for local institutions  
The direct taxes related to construction and operation will contribute to the revenue collected by local and regional bodies, and this will in turn benefit the entire community. The revenue in question can be estimated at 250 million pesetas a year. In a nutshell, these are just some of the numerous benefits that arise from a project for the future.  
   
It uses natural gas  
The cleanest, most natural and most ecological fuel.
The same gas as that used for domestic purposes in many Basque homes. 		 
   
There is no need for storage tanks or road transport  

The natural gas is piped in from the main gas pipeline that passes through Boroa, thus eliminating the need for storing large quantities of liquid fuel. This in turn means that there is no possibility of occasional spills or dangerous accidents. Transmission lines distribute the product and this eliminates the disturbance caused by road transport.

  
   
It reduces emissions  
The difference between a thermal power station and a Combined Cycle Plant is, for all practical purposes, the same as that between an old fashioned coal- or wood-burning cooker and a gas cooker. A CCP does not produce black smoke, or ash, or cinders, or soot. Besides, there are no emissions of nitrogen oxide or particles thus completely removing the possibility of acid rain. Its net environmental impact is almost one tenth of that produced by the old, familiar thermal power stations.  
   
No dioxins  
Dioxins are compounds that are formed during the burning of fuel such as coal, wood or petroleum by-products. There is no possibility of these compounds being formed in the case of the Combined Cycle Plant to be built at Amorebieta-Etxano since it will operate exclusively on natural gas.  
   
Highly eficent  
The option of a gas turbine Combined Cycle Plant (CCP) means that the heat, which is later transformed into electricity, is used more efficiently. There is a heat efficiency of up to 55% compared to 30/36% for the obsolete thermal power station. A CCP consumes less energy and uses fewer resources.  
   
Enviromental impact is lower in every aspect  
The state-of the-art technology used in this type of facility, involving a streamlined process and the use of natural gas as the only fuel, guarantees a minimal impact on the environment. The project's comprehensive Environmental Impact Study shows that it complies fully with all Basque, Spanish State and European Union regulations.  
   
It has proved to be the most atracttive generatin option for EU countries  
The guarantees offered by Combined Cycle Plants, in terms of respect for the environment, are highlighted by the fact that throughout Europe around 50 such plants have been built or are in the final phase of construction. Of these, 22 are in the United Kingdom, 6 in Holland, 2 in Italy, 3 in Germany, 5 in Belgium, 1 in Portugal, 5 in Ireland, 1 in Hungary, 1 in Greece, 1 in Finland, 2 in the Czech Republic and 1 in Austria. There are also plans to build in the region of 30 such plants at various sites in the Basque Country and throughout the Spanish State. Ireland, through the ESB, has been at the forefront of Combined Cycle technology since 1979.  
   
It should be pointed out in the first place that the main function of a gas turbine Combined Cycle Plant (CCP) is to turn natural gas into electricity.
It is called combined cycle precisely because it "combines" the heat generation cycles of a gas turbine with those of a steam one, thus contributing to greater energy efficiency with a lower gas consumption.
The Plant uses natural gas as the fuel for a gas turbine, an industrial version of the engines one sees on jet aircraft. The turning of this engine generates electricity and, in addition, the heat given off by the gas turbine is passed to a boiler that produces steam used in the steam turbine that drives the generator to produce yet more electricity.
We call this two-stage operation a Combined Cycle, and the technology is very efficient since, for the same input of energy, it generates over a third more electricity than a thermal power station. 		 
   
 
The original design for the project proposed a cooling system using water supplied by the Arriondo water treatment plant. However, on analysing and weighing up the allegations presented in the name of the townspeople during the public information phase of the Environmental Impact Assessment two concerns of the local residents were identified:
- The consumption of water for the cooling system
- The possible creation of mist associated with the above cooling system.
Consequently, and in keeping with the commitment made to Amorebieta-Etxano, BIZKAIA ENERGÍA has modified the original design of the project and will use air-cooling. Although involving a higher cost, this change follows from our desire to satisfy the demands of local residents by eliminating the problem of water consumption and the creation of mist		  
   
The project has a comprehensive and detailed Environmental Impact Study (EIS) of all the effects that the plant's activities may have on the environment. This Study complies fully with the mandatory regulations issued by the European Union. The possible effects analysed by the Study, including the means used to remove these, are as follows:  
   
Emissions  

Residual and surface water will be treated at a water treatment plant to ensure that the small amounts of water returned to the Ibaizabal river are completely harmless. Besides, the Hydrographical Confederation as well as regional and local bodies will continuously monitor the effluent and the volume of water in the Ibaizabal river.

 
   
Effluents  
. No waste will be disposed of into the river Ibaizabal. After being processed by an effluent treatment plant, they will go into the general sewage system. Together with other factors related to environmental impact, they will at all times be under the control of the autonomous and local authorities.  
   
Noise  
Measurements have already been made at all sensitive points over a 24-hour period. Design will ensure that the present levels and legally established limits are never surpassed..  
   
Visual Impact  
The Plant has been designed in such a way as to ensure that its physical appearance blends tastefully with its surroundings. The state-of-the-art technology of the Combined Cycle system means that greater energy efficiency is achieved in a more reduced space.
In addition an insulated indoor sub-station is replacing the conventional sub-station that requires great space and illumination and produces permanent background noise. This advanced technology, while involving much higher expenditure, will remove any question of impact on the surroundings. Additionally, there are plans to strategically landscape the entire area around the Plant with hedges that blend in with the surroundings, as well as for repopulating the whole area with trees. 		 
   
The BIZKAIA ENERGIA Combined Cycle Power Plant is a project that has proved its worth on the international stage and has been designed to make progress compatible with respect for the environment. It is fully aligned with the principle of Sustainable Development that has been universally adopted to ensure that the quality of life is improved while treating the environment with all due respect.
  
Above and beyond this, BIZKAIA ENERGIA openly states its commitment to do nothing that does have the approval of Amorebieta-Etxano.  
   
BIZKAIA ENERGÍA gives priority to dialogue with, and service to, the community, so should you wish to have further information about any aspect of the proposed Combined Cycle Plant, please call Freephone 900 502 289 and we will gladly answer your queries; or send your comments to our e-mail addressbe@bizkaiaenergia.com .