ENERGY giant ScottishPower has announced plans to build a gas-fired power station in Severnside, which would be capable of powering 1.5 million homes.

The firm is set to start its first round of consultation with local people and stakeholders at the end of this month.

ScottishPower wants to build the plant on 45 hectares of land off Severn Road, the site of the former Terra Nitrogen complex, and just a mile from Severn Beach.

The company has said the new power station would generate between 900MW to 1,200MW of electricity and would be known as the Avon Power Station.

Richard Escott, head of project development at ScottishPower, said the new plant would help replace the ageing fleet of power stations that are due to stop operating in the UK in the coming years.

He said: "The site we are examining has a long history of industrial usage, but our evaluation work will thoroughly consider all aspects of the surrounding environment.

"Our public consultations are set to begin at the end of the month, and we would encourage anyone in the area to come along to find out more about our proposals."

If built, the power plant could end up next door to an Energy Recovery Centre. Waste firm SITA is currently waiting to find out whether or not the Secretary of State will overturn a decision by South Gloucestershire Council to refuse permission for a 400,000 tonne incinerator to be built on land next to the former Terra Nitrogen plant.

The plant would also be only nine miles away from the site for the proposed new nuclear power station at Shepperdine, near Oldbury.

Under Government legislation the gas power station application would be considered a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, and like its nuclear counterpart, would be decided by the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC), not local planning officers at South Gloucestershire Council.

ScottishPower is holding public exhibitions on its plans at Severn Beach Village Hall on Friday, June 24 (2-8pm), Avonmouth Community Centre and Library on Saturday, June 25 (1-5pm), and Easter Compton Methodist Church on Thursday, June 30 (2-8pm).

For more information about the proposed development visit www.avonpowerstation.com