THE first year of trading for px, the company which took over the Enron site on Teesside, has proved a record one, with production levels at Teesside gas processing plant being driven higher and higher.

For the first time since commissioning in 1993, the Seal Sands site exceeded 2,000 tonnes of liquid fuel extraction from North Sea Gas in one day.

The 2,038 tonnes of propane, butane and condensate produced on January 10 was enough to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

The average daily production over the year was 1,650 tonnes - almost six times the amount processed in the first year of operation and nearly twice the amount processed in 1997.

Px was launched last July, when five former senior Enron managers were awarded the contracts to operate and manage the £100m gas processing plant and £800m power station.

The deal secured all 220 jobs and the company processes about 10pc of the UK's gas and generates 4pc of the electricity used in England and Wales.

Ian Clifford, director, said: "When you consider the site's prime responsibility is to process gas to fuel Teesside power station at Grangetown and its operations are governed by the amount of natural gas available, these are very impressive figures.

"They are the result of a continuous investment in technology and the capability of the teams who operate the plant."

The power station, too, has had a good year, meeting all its production and maintenance targets safely and efficiently.

The company is keen to encourage young people into the workplace and took on four apprentices at the site and five undergraduates. A former work placement student has graduated and joined the commercial department.

Site visits have also been made by 450 local schoolchildren, to learn about electricity generation.

Staff at px headquarters in Teesdale, Thornaby, include specialists in commercial energy trading, fuels and contracts management; health and safety, human resources, finance and legal services. They have advised on projects throughout the UK, the Isle of Man and in South America.

One local project is a care and maintenance agreement with Seal Sands' "next door neighbour" Viking Power to help operate its 50-megawatt gas-fired power plant.

The site is monitored continually from px's control room, with maintenance tasks carried out on a daily basis. The company is also supporting Viking staff with facility development and security at the plant.

"This has been an encouraging first year and we are in discussions with several other organisations about providing services locally and within the UK - both consultancy and operational," said px director, Steve Roy.

"We have moved on considerably from where we started and I am very optimistic about the future."