The location of a site in Teesside which will soon be home to a £1.5bn clean energy power station with carbon capture technology has been confirmed.

A groundbreaking ceremony yesterday morning (September 27) officially began the process of constructing NZT Power in partnership with bp and Equinor at Teesworks, a £1.5bn carbon capture power station which will be the first of its kind.

Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen alongside representatives from Teesworks and bp held a conference outlining the project, which ended with the Mayor using a digger from the site to ceremoniously break ground before construction of the station begins in September 2024.

Read more: Teesworks bp and Equinor NZT Power site breaks ground

The Northern Echo: Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station.Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station. (Image: STUART BOULTON)

By 2027, the site should be commercially running and employ over 1,000 people with jobs looking to become available for engineering, security, catering roles and more.

Once up and running, 860 megawatts of low-carbon electricity will be generated which will be enough to power up to 1.3 million homes. Two million tonnes of CO2 emissions from the site will then be captured and moved 90 miles offshore to a storage site built underneath the North Sea. 

Pictures taken of the future site show multiple diggers and trucks working on levelling the ground as workers buzz about, having already begun some of the work.

The Northern Echo: Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station.Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station. (Image: STUART BOULTON)

bp official Andy Lane, Vice President for Hydrogen and CCUS spoke of the satisfaction in seeing the project come to fruition.

He said: "This is a massive step forward as some of us have been working on this project for many years. It is really good to see this kind of activity.

"The last time I was here all of the blast furnaces were being blown up and we can now see that the site has changed beyond recognition. 

"Now we have removed the site and cleared it to be ready to be built upon again, it is satisfying."

The Northern Echo: Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station.Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station. (Image: STUART BOULTON)

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The Northern Echo: From left, Mayor Ben Houchen, Martin Corney and Matt Johnson of Teesworks and Andy Lane of bp, Hydrogen and CCS UK.From left, Mayor Ben Houchen, Martin Corney and Matt Johnson of Teesworks and Andy Lane of bp, Hydrogen and CCS UK. (Image: The Northern Echo)

Matt Johnson, one of the Directors of Teesworks spoke of the commitment the significant investment has shown to the region.

He said: "On behalf of Teesworks, I would like to say we wholeheartedly welcome this announcement and we are delighted to welcome this project.

The Northern Echo: Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station.Land on the Teesworks site that will soon hold the NZT carbon capture power station. (Image: STUART BOULTON)

"This £1.5bn investment is a huge commitment and not only highlights the potential of the site but the region as a whole.

"It is a huge vote of confidence for the people of Teesside that bp has chosen Teesworks as their location."