Forth Energy, a joint venture between Forth Ports and SSE, has been denied an approval by Dundee City Council for its 100MW biomass plant in Scotland.
The council’s policy and resource committee has supported the Labour councilor Richard McCready for citing levels of local air pollution and the facility design, according to the BBC.
Forth Energy announced the plans to build woodfuel renewable energy plant earlier in 2009, however concerns over the environmental impact of the plant led to an assessment study in 2011.
Dundee Council’s decision, meanwhile, will put the plant’s planning application up for public enquiry by the Scottish government.
McCready was quoted by the news agency as saying that the refusal was aimed at delivering a public inquiry to resolve the issues.
"A public inquiry will allow all the issues to be dealt with in an open and transparent manner and I am convinced that this is the best way forward," added McCready.
Commenting on the developments, Forth Energy spokesperson said that the company has accepted the council’s ruling and it is evaluating its position.
"Forth Energy’s proposed plant would create renewable electricity and heat, would bring significant investment and job creation to the city, and would help put Dundee on the map as a low carbon city," the spokesperson added.