Home / Europe / United Kingdom / Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant

Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant

Biomass power plant in England, United Kingdom. Approximate location 53.3546, -2.7513.

BiomassEnglandUnited Kingdom

Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant is a 20 MW biomass power plant in England, United Kingdom. It is operated by Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian (BWSC)/ Bioenergy Infrastructure Group. Based on its capacity (estimated), it can supply roughly 28k homes (estimated). It ranks #567 of 2,860 United Kingdom power plants by installed capacity. In context, biomass supplies about 14.1% of United Kingdom's electricity; the national grid averages 217 gCO₂/kWh (64.4% low-carbon) (2025).

20Legacy source-record capacity
27,531homes powered (est.)

Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id GBR0000190.

Data status

Known data

FacilityWidnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant WRI
CountryUnited Kingdom · England WRI
Coordinates53.3546, -2.7513 WRI
FuelBiomass WRI
MW installed capacity20 MW WRI source record; scope not independently normalised
OwnerBurmeister & Wain Scandinavian (BWSC)/ Bioenergy Infrastructure Group WRI

Calculated from dataset

Capacity rank in country#567 of 2860 calculated
Fuel-specific rank in country#23 of 227 calculated
Capacity vs country/fuel peers8.70× · 2 MW median · 227 peers calculated
Homes-powered equivalent27,531 calculated
Climate9.4°C · HDD 3,122 derived from coordinates
Environmental severityC4 · 30/100 derived from coordinates

Not available

CommissionedNot available not in dataset
TechnologyNot available not in dataset
GWh reported / yrNot available not in dataset
CO₂ emissionsNot available not in dataset

Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.

Data provenance

The capacity and fuel fields on this page are source-record values from the upstream open dataset. They are useful for identification and ranking, but they have not been upgraded to a 2026 registry/GEM-location verified value.

capacity: WRI Global Power Plant Database source-record (legacy); fuel: WRI source-record fuel

In context: how this plant compares

At 20 MW, Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant is well above the median biomass plant in United Kingdom (2 MW). Biomass plants burn organic material such as wood, residues or waste-derived fuel to raise steam; they are dispatchable and counted as low-carbon where the feedstock is sustainably sourced.

Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.

Capacity vs largest biomass plants in United Kingdom

Drax: 1,980 MW2kDraxSAICA Paper Mill: 135 MW135SAICA Pape…Ferrybridge Multi-fuel: 79 MW79Ferrybridg…Iggesund Paperboard CHP Plant: 49 MW49Iggesund P…Snetterton Biomass Plant: 44 MW44Snetterton…Tilbury Green Power: 43 MW43Tilbury Gr…Templeborough Biomass Power Plant- Rotherham: 42 MW42Templeboro…Thetford: 42 MW42Thetford

Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).

Owner

Operated by Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian (BWSC)/ Bioenergy Infrastructure Group.

Local climate & thermal context

This biomass plant burns organic material (wood, residues) to raise steam for a turbine. It sits in a temperate oceanic climate (Köppen Cfb) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 53.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.

9.4°Cannual mean temp
3,122heating degree-days (base 18°C)
0cooling degree-days (base 18°C)
47 melevation

Monthly mean temperature

J: 4 °CJF: 4 °CFM: 6 °CMA: 8 °CAM: 11 °CMJ: 14 °CJJ: 16 °CJA: 16 °CAS: 13 °CSO: 10 °CON: 7 °CND: 5 °CD16 °C

Heating degree-days here run 27% above the median power plant in this dataset — a proxy for how much extra energy heated equipment must replace through its surfaces in winter.

Climate heat-demand index: 66/100 — this site sits in the mid third of the power plants we cover by heating degree-days.

Climate normals: WorldClim 2.1 (1970–2000 monthly normals, 10 arc-min, CC BY 4.0); zone: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid). Degree-days & heat-demand index computed by PowerAtlas — a modelled heat-demand proxy, not a measured site figure.

Site climate & environmental severity

For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in a corrosive environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C4 — High), with humidity / wetness the leading environmental stress.

C4ISO 9223 corrosivity (indicative)
30/100environmental-severity index
11.8°Cseasonal temperature swing
47 kmdistance to coast

Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.

Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.

How it compares & nearby plants

The #23 largest biomass power plant of 227 in United Kingdom by capacity.

United Kingdom has 227 biomass power plants in this dataset, together about 3,654 MW of capacity.

Nearby power plants

Location

Coordinates 53.3546, -2.7513 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.

Frequently asked questions

What type of power plant is Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant?

Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant is a 20 MW source-record biomass power plant in England, United Kingdom.

How many homes can Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant power?

Its output is enough to supply roughly 27,531 homes (estimated).

Who operates Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant?

Widnes 3MG Biomass/Mersey Bioenergy (CHP) Plant is operated by Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian (BWSC)/ Bioenergy Infrastructure Group.

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