Paul Carey, managing director at upcoming Wisbech incinerator, promises to be ‘good neighbour’

The managing director of the company which will construct an incinerator in Fenland has promised to be a “good neighbour”.

On what was described as a “dark day for Wisbech” yesterday, Medworth CHP Ltd was granted permission to construct an energy from waste combined heat and power facility on the industrial estate at Algores Way.

Councillors, residents and campaigners across Cambridgeshire and Norfolk united to voice their disappointment and “disgust” at the decision of Claire Coutinho, the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.

The incinerator will recover energy in the form of electricity and steam from over half a million tonnes of non-recyclable (household, commercial and industrial waste each year.

It has a generating capacity of over 50 megawatts, and the steam and electricity can be used locally and excess electricity will be exported to the grid.

Following the Government decision, MVV’s managing director, Paul Carey, said: “We look forward to going ahead with this project, in accordance with the requirements of the Development Consent Order.

“We want to assure the local community that we will be a good neighbour as we build and operate the new facility, as we have already demonstrated at our facilities in Plymouth and Dundee.”

Yesterday, the likes of Fenland District Council, North East Cambridgeshire MP Steve Barclay, Wisbech Without Incineration campaigner Ginny Bucknor, and West Norfolk Council’s leader all expressed disappointment in the decision.

Ms Coutinho, in a report, said that the “public benefits associated with the proposed development outweigh the harms identified”.

Worries have centered around the scale of the development, its potential negative impacts on residents, and health and environmental concerns.