A FRENCH power company wants to build a second multi-millionpound renewable energy plant in Southampton.

Utilicom, the firm behind the Energy Centre at WestQuay, says the state-of-the-art station will feature the very latest in green energy technology.

Wood-fired biomass, nitrogen fuel cell and anaerobic digestion – energy from rotting waste – could all be incorporated.

Other sustainable power sources would be added to the scheme when they become viable.

The move comes 22 years after Utilicom teamed up with the city council to develop the UK’s first district energy scheme – the Southampton Geothermal Heating Company.

The company yesterday said the pioneering scheme must now expand if the city is to become a self-sustaining city in energy generation.

The district energy network already supplies about 40 businesses including IKEA, Carnival headquarters and WestQuay.

Southampton’s environment boss said while the council would help the firm find a site for the power plant, it could not contribute any taxpayer’s money to fund the scheme.

Utilicom executive director Mike Smith said the firm planned to lobby the Government for financial support.

“We’re currently looking for a site, on either private or public land, which would be suitable for us to build a new energy centre on,” Mr Smith said.

“If we can get a site with a reasonable footprint then we hope to have that as a new base to put of variety of renewable energies in there. We have got to recognise that over the next 15 to 20 years the technology will change.”

Councillor Matt Dean, Cabinet member for environment and transport, confirmed early talks had opened about developing a second plant.

“We are supportive of what they are trying to do and if they require assistance in identifying a new site we will support them,”

Cllr Dean said.

“We will also give them every assistance in going for grants, but what we won’t be doing is financing it out of the council tax in Southampton. We couldn’t even if we wanted to.”

The revelation comes just weeks after the Daily Echo revealed a German energy giant was in talks to build a £90m woodfired power plant.

Evonik Industries is scouring the city to find a site for a 20 megawatt biomass station, fuelled by scrap wood. It could power up to 40,000 homes.

The district heating scheme began in 1986 when Utilicom began pumping heat from a miledeep geothermal borehole.

Over the years, several CHP engines and backup boilers for heating have been added, along with absorption chillers for cooling.

Last month, the plant began supplying the docks with low carbon electricity in a world-first scheme.

Previously all energy from the plant – 23.5 million kilowatts – was fed into the National Grid.

Now it will supply around 55 per cent of the port’s energy needs.

The plant captures the heat typically wasted in a traditional power station and supplies it to local homes and businesses.