The Abernedd combined-cycle power plant will be built at the Baglan Bay Energy Park, on the former site of a chemical plant near Port Talbot.
The UK energy minister Charles Hendry said that the new power station will bring jobs and industry back to this disused site and will provide a boost to the nation’s energy security.
"Gas is the cleanest and most reliable fossil fuel and it will continue to be a central part in the country’s energy mix during the transition to a low carbon economy," Hendry said.
The UK government has also given SSE consent to retrofit its coal-plant in Fiddler’s Ferry, Warrington, with a selective catalytic reduction plant to reduce nitrogen oxides emissions.
