Retford: Minister opens new ‘energy from waste’ plant

A new green energy plant which converts farm waste into electricity has been opened near Retford by energy minister Greg Barker.

Tamar Energy launched its anaerobic digestion (AD) facility at Sutton Grange Farm last week.

And the MP, who is Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, came along for a tour of the site.

As the UK’s largest on-farm AD plant, the 3MW facility will take agricultural waste, manures and maize from across Notts, Lincolnshire and South Yorkshire, and convert it into biogas.

The biogas is converted on site to generate renewable electricity which is exported to the national grid - enough to power up to 6,000 homes.

“Energy from waste is an essential part of the energy mix, it’s a win-win – helping to drive low carbon energy and helping reduce bills for hardworking consumers,” said Mr Barker on his visit last Thursday.

“Tamar Energy’s new anaerobic digestion plant is the largest facility of its kind in the UK and is a great example of how waste can be used to powering homes and businesses across the country. That’s why we have put a range of financial incentives in place to encourage other organisations to rise to the challenge.”

The Retford facility is a joint venture between Tamar Energy and Sutton Grange Anaerobic Digestion, a company established by Fred Walter and Mark Paulson.

It is situated on Fred Walter’s 2,500 acre family farm and is the latest in Tamar Energy’s rapidly expanding UK network.

Mr Barker was given a tour of the new facility by Tamar Energy’s chairman Alan Lovell during which he heard how the AD facility extracts the inherent energy value of chicken litter and other feedstock.

Then he unveiled a plaque to mark the official opening of the plant which started generating electricity earlier in the month.

Tamar chairman Alan Lovell said: “Having Greg Barker here to officially open our first Midlands facility is a clear sign of the Government’s commitment to supporting AD.”

“It recognises the obvious benefits that the technology can bring to the UK’s renewable energy mix”

“The Retford facility makes a significant contribution to our plan for a flexible national network generating energy from a wide range of organic material, while fulfilling the long-held ambition of Fred Walter and Mark Paulson for an AD plant at Sutton Grange.”

Tamar Energy has three operational AD plants un the UK, two further plants are in construction and a number of other sites are in the advanced stages of development.

The company aims to develop a national network of AD facilities generating 100 MW of renewable energy.

The AD process also generates nutrient-rich biofertiliser which farmers can use in place of more expensive fossil fuel-based fertilisers.

Heat generated by the process is also used to dry wood chips which are sold to Drax biomass power station in North Yorkshire.