30,000 TPA Food Waste to Biogas AD Plant Secured 15m in London
A new 1.2 MW anaerobic digestion food waste facility that will produce biogas from 30,000 tonnes of London’s food waste each year, has secured £15 million of funding. According to the UK Green Investment Bank (GIB), which is making a £7.5 million commitment to the project, the facility will process food waste collected from the hotels, restaurants, retail trade and local food manufacturers, which would have otherwise been sent to landfill. The investment is being made via GIB's Foresight managed fund, UK Waste Resources and Energy Investments (UKWREI), which is investing £7.5 million alongside the Foresight Environmental Fund which is investing £7.5 million on the same terms as UKWREI. Located in Enfield, north London, the facility will also include a green waste composting plant that will take garden waste from homes across London and the Northern Home Counties. The GIB explained that along with the digestate from the anaerobic digestion process, will be used as fertiliser by the farmers, on whose land the new facility will sit. This is expected to save the farmers over £120,000 each year. Construction is expected to begin in June 2014 and the plant is expected to be operational by Spring 2016. The project will create six full time, permanent jobs to support the on-going maintenance and operation of the plant. The developer, D Williams & Co Limited, will construct the project on its own land at Cattlegate Farm (pictured) - a 2000 acre agricultural farm in Enfield which produces herbs as well as traditional arable operations. The facility is expected to generate 7400 MWh of renewable electricity each year, enough to power 1750 homes, and is anticipated to save approximately 21,000 tonnes of CO2e per year, equivalent to taking 9500 cars off the road. "The announcement of this new project follows the opening, last month, of London's first commercial-scale anaerobic digestion and composting facility which is now producing renewable energy and generating returns for its investors,” commented Shaun Kingsbury, chief executive, UK Green Investment Bank. “We are seeing real momentum in the commercial deployment of this technology which, I hope, will see further growth in the year ahead,” he added. Business Secretary, Vince Cable commented: "This new plant will mean less of our waste going to landfill, less reliance on fossil fuels for energy generation and provides compost for the farmers whose land it is built on.” "Through our industrial strategy we are working in partnership with business to give companies the confidence to invest, securing green jobs and a stronger economy," he continued. Matthew Pencharz, the Mayor of London's senior energy & environment adviser added: "I want to see more of these dynamic initiatives mirrored across the city, which boost the environment and put the capital at the forefront of the waste and recycling sector." Read More WRAP launches Fund for Small Scale On Farm Anaerobic Digestion Biogas Facilities WRAP has today launched the On Farm Loan Fund which will make up to £400,000 available to farmers to develop anaerobic digestion biogas facilities on farms. £1m Investment in Optical Sorting at Viridor Polymer Recycling Facility in UK Viridor has invested over £1million in a new flake optical sorting station on the HDPE line of its polymer recycling facility in Skelmersdale. Design Phase Complete in ETI Waste to Energy Gasification Competition The design phase for a commercially viable, efficient waste to energy gasification demo plant has been completed by all three firms competing in the ETI's £2.8m competition to develop such a facility. Clarke Energy to Supply Eight GE Landfill Gas-to-Energy Engines to Biffa in UK Clarke Energy has been selected to supply Biffa with eight GE Jenbacher landfill gas engines as part of the modernisation of several of its landfill gas-to-energy plants across the UK.