COSTA Coffee’s new roastery in Basildon is being fired up from today.

The giant coffee chain will officially turn on its new £38million roastery in Christopher Martin Road.

The new facility has more than quadrupled Costa’s roasting capacity from 11,000 tonnes of coffee per annum from its Lambeth, South London site, to 45,000 tonnes per year.

Dominic Paul, managing director of Costa, said: “Costa is growing rapidly as a global business and our new roaster will provide the platform for sustained international expansion as we continue inspiring the world to love great coffee.

“Turning on our new roasting capacity is a landmark for the business.

“It’s a statement of our ambition to grow and our passion for great coffee.”

Construction started in November 2015 on a specially chosen site in Basildon close to Tilbury Docks where the firm’s raw coffee beans are imported.

Green coffee beans from Rainforest Alliance certified growers are shipped from coffee producing countries to Tilbury Docks which is just 14 miles from the roastery - half the distance of the old roastery.

This means fewer road miles, making this new venture more efficient in its supply chain than the previous site.

Named Paradise Street, the new facility is Europe’s largest coffee roaster and covers 85,690 square feet - the equivalent of over 30 tennis courts.

It will enable Costa to produce coffee for 2.1 billion cups of coffee per year and is expected to be in operation for the duration of the next 20 to 30 years.

Giorgio Fioravanti, production director, said: “This excellent new facility will enable Costa to grow for decades to come, as we look to go from the UK’s favourite coffee brand to the world’s favourite.

“The latest roasting technology we have here will help us to do that, slowly and carefully roasting every coffee bean to seal in the unique flavour of our coffee.”

On site renewable energy generation will further reduce the building’s carbon footprint, with the roof hosting a 249kw solar photovoltaic system - a solar powered electric supply - which will provide power for the roaster.

There is also a rainwater harvesting system which, in tandem, will generate hot water for the building.

Paradise Street will be one of the most sustainable industrial buildings in the world.

Labour councillor Andrew Buxton welcomed the new roasting plant.

He said: “It will be really good for the community and it will create employment.

“I think it’s brilliant.”

Costa has also revealed that a new coffee academy to train 3,000 baristi per year will be inside the building.