ELK completed a major boiler tube insert replacement programme at Ince Park Renewable Energy, a 21.5MWe waste wood gasification facility capable of processing up to 176,000 tonnes of waste wood per year. The plant converts waste wood into syngas using Outotec Gasification technology; syngas combustion drives a water tube boiler to raise superheated steam for a Siemens steam turbine, exporting electricity to the District Network Operator.
The site is operated and maintained by Evero Energy Services Ltd (EESL) on behalf of the asset owners Ince Bio Power Limited (IBPL), and ELK delivered the works during the June 2025 Major Outage.
The challenge
As part of statutory inspection requirements under the Pressure System Safety Regulations (PSSR), the boiler tube systems were scheduled for Non-Destructive Testing (NDT). The boiler was scaffolded, tubes were grit blasted, and NDT was completed by specialist partners to confirm repair locations and quantities.
The scope covered multiple tube areas, including:
- Screen boiler
- Superheater No.1, No.2, No.3
- Evaporator No.1 and No.2 Scope of Work – Boiler Tube Ins…
Tube restraint arrangements varied across the boiler, with hand-cuff type tube ties in Screen & Superheater No.1, and solid tube sheet restraints across Superheater No.2/No.3 and Evaporator bundles—driving a repair approach that had to be both precise and repeatable.
ELK’s scope of work
Following NDT identification, ELK replaced defective boiler tube sections by installing tube inserts across the relevant boiler bundles. The boiler contained six tube bundles with defined material specifications, including SA192M carbon steel and SA213M 310H stainless steel, with tube outside diameters of 50.8mm and 63.5mm (wall thickness 3.81mm).
ELK’s delivery included:
- Removing identified damaged tube sections following inspection outputs
- Installing free-issued tube inserts (bends/straights as required by location)
- Completing welding and quality hold points in line with site controls and outage requirements Scope of Work – Boiler Tube Ins…
To support programme certainty, ELK planned around an expected maximum of 295 inserts, aligned to the available insert stock issued for the outage:
- 50.8mm SA192M: 45 × 2000mm inserts
- 63.5mm SA192M: 50 × 2000mm inserts
- 50.8mm SA213M 310H: 200 × 2000mm inserts
Delivery approach and collaboration
ELK resourced the works for 24/7 execution, mobilising trained, competent personnel, tooling, and consumables suitable for high-control boiler environments. Confined space access requirements were managed with dedicated entry support (hole watchers/top men), operating under permit controls and the site’s safety systems.
On site, ELK integrated with:
- Evero Outage Team
- Evero Operations
- The NDT contractor Scope of Work – Boiler Tube Ins…
This ensured rapid turnaround from inspection results to physical repairs, while maintaining safe access and minimising interface delays.
Outcome
ELK successfully delivered the boiler tube insert scope during the outage window (13 June 2025 to 6 July 2025), supporting the site’s PSSR inspection programme and helping return the boiler system to service with integrity-critical tube sections renewed.