ReFood has opened the ‘UK’s largest’ gas-to-grid anaerobic digestion (AD) plant in Widnes.
According to the company, the facility will be capable of recycling 120,000 tonnes of commercial and domestic food waste and liquids, generating ‘up to 180 million kilowatt-hours’ (KWh) of biomethane each year.
The gas produced at the Widnes plant will be transported directly to the national gas grid in order to provide enough power for 10,000 homes, ReFood claim.
The Widnes plant is the ‘first of its kind’ among ReFood’s European portfolio of 11 plants that, when combined, provide enough power for 46,000 homes.
Andy Smith, CEO of SARIA, ReFood’s parent company, said: “As out first gas-to-grid AD plant it will operate as a showcase plant for both the ReFood brand and also the AD industry as a whole in both the UK and Europe.
“Food waste offers such important potential as a resource, that we must maximise this through the use of new innovative technologies.”
Plant details
ReFood Widness is set to offer integrated food waste collection and recycling services for businesses within a 50 mile radius including hotels, restaurants, cafes, bars, local authorities and retailers.
In addition, the ‘sanitised bin swap service’, where a full bin is swapped for fully sanitised ReFood bin is designed to encourage the separation of food waste at the source as clean bins can be used in a kitchen environment.
Smith continued: “AD lends itself perfectly to a localised model due to the transportation of both the food waste and the fertiliser by-product.
“As the North West is an important hub for both food production and distribution, Widnes is the perfect location alongside out existing food chain by-product processing facilities.”
SARIA plan to build another AD plant in Dagenham, with the potential to recycle 160,000 tonnes of food waste in order to produce 22.7 MWh of electricity for the national grid. Construction is due to begin soon with the plant targetted to be operational ‘in late 2015’.
Read more about anaerobic digestion plants in the UK.
Get our weekly digest
resource.co article ai
How will the government and DMOs address the challenges of including glass in DRS while ensuring a level playing field across the UK?
There's no easy solution to include glass in the DRS while maintaining a level playing field. Potential approaches include a phased introduction of glass, potentially with higher deposits to reflect its logistical challenges. The government and DMOs could incentivise innovation in glass packaging design and subsidise dedicated return points for glass-handling. Exemptions for smaller businesses unable to handle glass might also be necessary. Any successful solution will likely blend several approaches. It must address the differing priorities of devolved administrations, balance environmental benefits with logistical and cost implications, and be supported by robust consumer education campaigns emphasizing the importance of glass recycling.