The guy starting this was on BBC Look North last week chatting about the proposal. He's a big lad - Amy Garcia was pretty much sat on his knee. But he seeemed very confident both about the viability of this project in particular, and also in the general principle that local coal should be at least be contributing to the feedstock for existing coal-fired stations. Bringing it all in from abroad, especially if it's poorer quality, does seem a bit mental, even if it is a good deal for train drivers.
Having had some recent work experience within the biomass changeover, I would think it appropriate to maintain at least a duel-fuel strategy for some time to come yet, as there will be undoubtedly be plenty of teething problems in the short term.