AD Facility To Transform Somerset Organic Wastes Into Power
3 October 2011
Viridor will process its first anaerobic digestion facility in the South West, being located at the company's Walpole Recycling and Landfill site, near Bridgwater in Somerset
The proposed £10m anaerobic digestion plant will initially be configured to produce one megawatt of electricity for export to the National Grid in addition to the power needed to operate the facility. The company will continue to review this and the possibility of producing clean gas for injection into the gas grid going forward.
Phase One of the development will provide capacity of 30,000 tonnes. Up to 21,000 tonnes will be available for the Somerset Waste Partnership's food waste collections (subject to SCC approval on 23 September), with the remainder catering for South West commercial customers producing food and organic wastes.
The company is currently in the detailed design phase of the project with groundworks due to start imminently and construction expected to begin in early 2012.
Viridor currently generates 136MW of renewable power across its landfill gas power plants and energy from waste facilities - enough electricity to meet the domestic needs of a city the size of Bristol. At Walpole we generate around 3MW, which is created by converting methane captured from the landfill.
Viridor's SW regional director, Richard Jenkins, said: "Viridor is pleased to be working in partnership with the Somerset Waste Partnership to deliver this exciting and essential facility. Walpole AD plant will help to transform food and organic wastes from households, restaurants and food businesses across the county into renewable energy and a recycled soil conditioner."
Somerset Waste Board chairman Cllr Derek Yeomans said: "This is an important development for Somerset, creating a sustainable, constant, environmentally-friendly source of power. AD will generate savings, limit climate damaging pollution, and efficiently deal with all our food waste within the county."
Darrel Moore
