MAJOR expansion is on the cards for a Dorset company after planners gave the go-ahead to a £7 million biogas plant.
Work on building the facility, which will convert 45,000 tonnes of food waste and locally sourced maize into gas, is due to start this month at Eco Sustainable Solutions’ Parley site. Completion is expected in 2015.
The anaerobic digester (AD) plant will produce about 4.4 million cubic metres of gas annually which Eco estimates will provide 3,000 homes with energy.
It will form part of a renewable energy park covering 25 acres at Eco’s Chapel Lane site. Currently 17 acres of land is used for organics recycling.
The company has already received planning permission for a £14 million biomass generating station at Parley.
The station, which will be fuelled by 25,000 tonnes of waste wood, is expected to be operational next year. It will provide approximately 2.3 megawatts (MW) of electricity per annum.
The final part of the renewable energy park is a solar energy farm which will use photovoltaic panels capable of directly converting sunlight into electrical current.
Christchurch planners approved the £15 million farm in March and work is now underway on the scheme.
It will cover an area the equivalent of 65 football pitches and generate approximately 20 MW of low carbon ‘green’ electrical power, meeting the electricity needs of about 5,000 homes.
The AD plant was given the green light by Dorset County Council’s planning committee after officers recommended the scheme for approval.
Trelawney Dampney, Eco’s Managing Director, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to have cleared this final hurdle. It’s now full steam ahead on creating one of the UK’s largest renewable energy parks on a purpose-built site.”
He added: “This represents a major expansion for Eco and we’re very excited to finally be able to put our plans into action.”
Founded in 1994, Eco employs 50 people and has an annual turnover of £10 million.
The company owns and operates the UK’s leading purpose-built site for organics recycling and renewable energy generation, currently processing 250,000 tonnes of organic material each year across four facilities.
The £36 million renewable energy park is expected to create up to ten new jobs.
