Veolia UK has secured an order to design, install and manage a 520kWe biogas-fired CHP plant for Rose Hill Recycling in Gloucestershire in the UK.

The CHP plant is fueled by the biogas derived from mixed food waste collected from across the Cotswolds and will save around 1750 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year. 

The Dymock-based Rose Hill Recycling is into the business of composting and recycling, which processes about 35,000 tonnes of food and farm waste per annum.

According to Veolia, the new CHP plant is expected to generate about 4.56GWh of renewable electricity each year, which is enough to power 1400 UK households.

The heat produced from the power plant will be used by the anaerobic digestion facility to help turn food waste, animal waste and energy crops into biogas. The gas produced in the process will be fed back into the cogeneration unit to generate renewable electricity and heat, forming a closed loop system.

Electricity produced from the plant is also expected to take some load off of the local grid and contribute to the UK’s target of producing at least 20% of its power from renewable sources by the year 2020.

Veolia’s Public and Commercial chief operating officer Gavin Graveson said: “Reducing food waste is very important, but our unavoidable and inedible food waste still has a value as a resource. Current estimates show that if all the UK's inedible domestic food waste was processed by AD, it could generate enough electricity for 350,000 households.

“By effectively optimising all the opportunities for biogas CHP we will ensure we can capture this valuable resource and contribute even more to the circular economy. This latest project effectively moves nearer this goal and has already saved over 1300 tonnes of emissions.”

Rose Hill Recycling owner and director Mark Bennion said: "Food waste sent to landfill gives off methane which is around 20 times more harmful to the environment than CO2.

“By using these scraps and peelings as a renewable energy resource, rather than sending it to landfill, we can help reduce carbon emissions and save local taxpayers money by recycling. It’s a win-win solution that will help to protect our environment."


Image: Veolia to install CHP gas plant at Rose Hill recycling at Gloucestershire in the UK. Photo: Courtesy of Veolia.