SEWAGE bio pellets from a North-East treatment works will help fuel cement production.
Pellets processed from sludge are to be used as part of a fuel mix to heat a 2,000 degrees centigrade cement kiln in an environmental first for the UK.
The deal has been sealed between Lafarge Cement UK's Cauldon Works, in Staffordshire, and Northumbrian Water's Bran Sands treatment plant, in the Tees Valley.
Permanent permission to use the fuel has been given by the Environment Agency after Lafarge completed a six-month trial using processed sewage bio pellets (PSP) as part of the fuel mix for heating raw materials in the kiln at Cauldon.
The pellets are used to replace some of the coal and petroleum coke traditionally used to create the heat needed for the process.
It is anticipated that the majority of sludge processed at the Bran Sands works will go to Cauldon.
Northumbrian Water's Bran Sands manager, David Charlton, said: "Through this long-term relationship with a trusted partner, Northumbrian Water has found a secure, safe and sustainable reuse for sewage sludge which avoids potentially adverse environmental impacts and enables the company to support the renewable energy market."
Northumbrian Water produces the pellets at its regional sludge treatment centre, part of its treatment plant at Teesport.
Sludge is produced from waste treatment on the site and is then processed into pellets as safe as garden soil by being dried in huge tumble drums.
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