A FIRM has unveiled ambitious £100m plans it says could create scores of jobs and make a town a green energy capital.

Biopower Group is due to start work on a factory in Hartlepool, which will convert food waste into electricity.

The £30m scheme is expected to create 25 jobs and support around 80 construction posts.

However, bosses told The Northern Echo they are in talks to utilise further technology, which could augment the Brenda Road scheme with two sister plants, including a gas production base.

They added the electricity development, which is expected to take 18 months to complete, could start producing power by mid-2017, supplying energy to around 4,000 homes every year.

But Steve Winspear, Biopower managing director, said the company is thinking bigger, describing its electricity project, which is expected to take 110,000 tonnes of waste every year, as a big chemistry set capable of making a huge difference to industry.

He said the base has the potential to create a fertiliser by-product, adding Biopower’s plans for adjoining factories could also yield a significant amount of operational jobs.

He said: “It uses waste foods and biodegradable stuff, things that can be troublesome to get rid of and would go to landfill at best.

“But we are looking at different technology too.

“There is scope on the site for two further phases, which potentially could result in £100m of investment overall into the Hartlepool economy.

“At the moment, we have a grid connection but we have the opportunity to take a plant that produces biogas and put it in the gas grid too.

“We are talking to people about technology.

“This development is on an area that has been grassed over, so it is adding rateable value to the town.

“There is a whole host of things that would help raise Hartlepool’s green credentials.”

Mr Winspear, who was born in Hartlepool, said he was delighted to be giving something back to his hometown, adding Biopower is in discussions to source further waste deliveries to maintain feedstock levels.

He added: “We are not traipsing waste from London or Liverpool; it is all within a 25-mile radius and we also hope to work hand-in-hand with the council.

“We are not relying on Mrs Miggins’ scraping off a plate and into a bin either.

“A lot of hard work has gone into getting to this stage and the council’s forward-thinking has helped this investment become a reality.”

Councillor Kevin Cranney, chairman of the council’s regeneration services committee, added: “This will result in significant investment and much-needed jobs.”