The anaerobic digestion plant will be situated just off the A1 at Bygrave Lodge Farm near Baldock in Hertfordshire and will be designed, constructed and wholly owned by leading AD company Biogen. 

The 45,000 tonne per year plant will process food waste from food manufacturers, supermarkets and restaurants to generate electricity for the national grid and a biofertiliser for the local farm and surrounding farmland. The plant will produce enough power for around 4,000 homes continually for a year – approximately the number of households in Baldock. 

The Bygrave Lodge AD plant is now in the pre-construction and tendering phase, Biogen having previously secured the necessary planning permission.  It is expected that work will commence on site by the end of March with the plant completed and generating electricity by mid-2014. 

Richard Barker, Biogen’s Chief Executive said, “The plant is in an excellent location which will enable us to extend our service to new customers in Hertfordshire and North London. Once completed and when counted alongside Biogen’s other AD projects being built around the UK, this will make a significant difference to our current food waste processing capacity, doubling it by early 2014.” 

Biogen, who currently own and operate AD plants in Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire has also started construction on an 11,000 tonne AD plant in Caernarfon, is about to start work on a 22,500 plant in Denbighshire and has been appointed preferred bidder for a further AD contract in Rhondda.