Electricity produced by the incinerator (FOI)

Request

Since it was commissioned what annual percentage of the Island's total electricity consumption has the incinerator produced each year?

Response

Electricity generated by the Energy Recovery Facility (ERF) is initially supplied to run the ERF and La Collette waste site with any excess being supplied to the Jersey Electricity Company (JEC) for distribution onto the Island grid.

The Government of Jersey does not record what percentage of the Island's total electricity consumption is produced by the ERF.  Therefore, this information is not held and Article 10 of the Freedom of Information (Jersey) Law 2011 applies.

However, the following table details the amount of electricity generated and exported to the JEC from 2011 to the 2021.  The difference will be the electricity used for waste activities on the La Collette site.

Details of electricity generated by the ERF and exported to JEC between 2011 to 2021

The table on page 42 of the JEC annual report shows the percentage generated by the JEC, the ERF and imported in an Island context. 

Jersey Electricity Annual Report and Accounts 2021 (jec.co.uk) (page 42)

The following items should be noted:

• that the electricity used on the La Collette waste site and to run the ERF is not included, therefore, the overall Island percentage generated by the ERF is understated
• the ERF was formerly known as the Energy for Waste facility (EfW) as referenced in the JEC report
• the JEC accounts are to 30 September, therefore the years run Oct to Sep in the JEC table, whereas they are calendar year on the ERF table.

Article applied

Article 10 - Obligation of scheduled public authority to confirm or deny holding information

(1) Subject to paragraph (2), if –

(a) a person makes a request for information to a scheduled public authority; and

(b) the authority does not hold the information, it must inform the applicant accordingly.