In the UK, Eco Sustainable Solutions Ltd has announced that construction has started on a £15.6 million anaerobic digestion (AD) plant in Dorset which will convert local food waste and other organic material into renewable energy and biofertiliser. Germany-headed biogas plant manufacturer Weltec Biopower GmbH (WELTEC) has been commissioned to build the plant that will provide biomethane to the grid.
Located near Bournemouth Airport, the project is the largest to be undertaken in the 29-year history of Eco Sustainable Solutions. Based at Parley near Christchurch, it will be the second AD facility for the company, the first of which was also supplied by Weltec.
The new AD facility will be capable of handling over 50,000 tonnes of food waste and producing around 60 GWh of biomethane aka renewable natural gas (RNG) per annum that will be injected into the national gas grid.
The new plant will accept leftover food and peelings from the local area and agricultural residues from nearby businesses and its own farms. A de-packaging plant for food is already in place at another nearby location.
The lion’s share of funding for the new plant – £8,715,000 – is from Lombard, the UK’s largest asset finance provider and part of NatWest Group.
The mission of the team at Eco Sustainable Solutions is to create a more sustainable environment for everyone and to encourage people to recycle as much as possible. We were very pleased to be able to support the business in putting this into action with its new anaerobic digestion plant. It’s exciting to work with a business putting sustainability at its core, said Henry Bragginton, Relationship Manager at Lombard.
Hurn-based Mildren Construction is the main building contractor for the new Parley AD plant which is expected to be fully operational by January 2026 and create five new jobs.
We are incredibly grateful to Lombard for their support, including guiding us through a complex process over many months. What was particularly impressive was that they were able to leverage the right people within the bank at the right time, making the transaction smooth and hassle-free for us, said Andy Moore, Financial Director at Eco Sustainable Solutions.
Uniform mix, high system availability
Eco Sustainable Solutions is also converting its fleet of trucks, which transport waste to and from the facility, from diesel to green gas.
The RNG will also come from the AD plant and result in an 85 percent reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions compared to diesel.
According to Weltec, its modular plant design enables the project to be completed within 18 months. High-quality stainless steel is used for the construction of the two 5,579 m3 digesters, the storage tank, and the two pre-storage tanks.
Proven pump and agitator technologies are used for sustainable digestion of the previously homogenized organic materials such as submersible motor and long-axis agitators with high performance, which prevent substrates from settling at the bottom of the tanks and ensure optimal mixing of the input materials.
The biogas produced is processed into biomethane using an upgrading system with membrane technology. No interruption to biomethane production is necessary during system maintenance, which contributes to high plant availability.
Weltec also supplies pump containers, dosing units, desulphurization, heating, and three downstream hygienisation systems.
Simple operation and award-winning design
The components can be monitored and regulated by Eco Sustainable Solutions, which will operate the plant, at any time via the web-based control system.
The innovative tool guarantees complete and rapid access to all plant parameters explained Stephan Stärk, responsible for automation technology at Weltec Biopower.
Weltec has implemented the first biogas project for Eco Sustainable Solutions in Piddlehinton. Here, a 1.6 MWe biogas power was commissioned in 2009 and expanded two years later.
A hygienization stage for the fermentation of food and agricultural waste has also been implemented there.
The 1.6 MW biogas plant received the renowned British Organics Recycling Awardin 2013 for its efficient use of energy, remarked Carsten Hesselfeld Sales Manager at Weltec Biopower.
According to Hesselfeld, an important criterion for the award was not only the modern technology but also the sustainable overall concept.
This includes, for example, the high-quality fertilizer output under the strict British PAS110 standards and the decoupled system waste heat for a neighbouring feed mill.
