The creation of a £500 million gas-fired power station in Sale will provide more than 600 jobs during and after the construction period, it has been claimed.

It will generate enough electricity to supply around 500,000 homes, according to the department of business, employment and regulatory reform, which approved the project.

Trafford council has also been involved in consultations over plans for the new power station, which will emit half as much carbon dioxide as a coal-powered plant.

There are also plans to capture and store carbon dioxide, according to Bridestones Developments, which will build the power station on the site of the coal-fired Carrington Power Station.

The 860-megawatt plant should be operational in 2012 or 2013.

Mike Benson, from Bridestones, told the Manchester Evening News: "We are delighted that the government has approved our plans. We will now focus on the design details and a construction programme."

Consent to build and operate power stations with a capacity of more than 50 megawatts is required under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989.