Plans To Replace Ageing City Incinerator

20 February 2026
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Richard PriceWest Midlands


Plans to change an with a more effective one are due to be analyzed by city leaders.


A 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 "substantial" income which might be reinvested into local recycling and net no plans.


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


The job could also be a significant factor to the city's district heating network to offer public buildings with low-carbon heating and warm water, powered by geothermal energy, a representative said.


The city board's cabinet is being asked to begin a formal procurement procedure to find an organisation to partner with, who might invest, design, build and run the brand-new center.


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


Cabinet member Finlay Gordon-McCusker stated the current center had actually burnt more than four million tonnes of rubbish given that it opened in 1995, offering a "sustainable alternative" to garbage dump.


The council wanted to consider an "entrepreneurial" method to running the center, he added.


Waste boost


This would involve a more considerable upfront financial investment than other options, Gordon-McCusker stated.


But it was anticipated that the authority would make an earnings from the plan in the longer term, he declared, through the sale of electrical power and heat as well as costs charged to other organisations utilizing the site for their waste.


The new site could handle about 230,000-290,000 tonnes of waste each year, which would be a boost of in between 10-38% of present levels.


A public assessment will run during March and April.