Encyclis' Protos Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) in Cheshire has commenced operational testing with its first combustion of residual waste, marking the transition from hot commissioning to commercial operations. Over 2,500 tonnes of residual waste have been processed to date.
The facility will process up to 500,000 tonnes annually of non-recyclable commercial and municipal waste, generating 49.9 MW of baseload electricity. Secondary aggregates and recyclable metals are recovered from ash streams for circular economy redeployment.
Protos ERF's strategic differentiator is planned integration with a groundbreaking carbon capture facility currently under construction on adjacent land. The carbon capture plant will capture approximately 370,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually from Protos ERF's combustion emissions and transport the captured CO₂ via pipeline to Liverpool Bay for permanent geological storage as part of the HyNet North West carbon capture and storage cluster.
The facility will become operational with carbon capture by 2029, positioning it as the UK's first decarbonised energy-from-waste infrastructure. This model represents a significant shift in waste-to-energy policy — moving beyond simple waste diversion to emissions elimination through integrated CCS infrastructure.
Encyclis has recruited over 45 permanent operational staff including engineers, electricians, operators, environmental specialists and support personnel. Four local apprentices are undergoing formal technical training. The workforce will expand further upon carbon capture plant activation in 2029.
The facility was engineered, procured and constructed by turnkey partners METLEN and Standardkessel Baumgarte GmbH, with progressive system commissioning undertaken through 2025 and into 2026.
Protos ERF represents the third operational facility in Encyclis' integrated cluster, alongside Rookery South ERF in Bedfordshire and Newhurst ERF in Leicestershire. A fourth core facility, Walsall ERF in the West Midlands, is under construction and scheduled to commence operations in 2027.
The Protos milestone demonstrates the viability of integrated waste-energy-CCS infrastructure at scale, with direct relevance to achieving UK decarbonisation targets in the waste sector.
Protos energy-from-waste facility begins operations with carbon capture
