UK organic waste plant teams up with global green fuel experts in £45m investment
UK organic waste treatment specialists have teamed up with a global green fuel expert to develop the UK's first state of the art ethanol-from-waste production facility and training centre.
The Maltings Organic Treatment Plant at South Milford, West Yorkshire, a subsidiary company to Mytum & Selby Waste Recycling Ltd., - which opens its specialist composting and recycling facility this year to serve local authorities and businesses across Yorkshire and the Humber – is investing more than £45 million in the project, which is scheduled for completion in 2011.
Steve Carrie, Director of The Maltings Organic Treatment company commented:
"The Maltings Plant is designed to help local councils and businesses meet stringent targets for recycling and the diversion of Biomass away from landfill. Our planning permission on site makes the plant the only one of its kind in the UK and enables us to handle huge quantities of food waste, ABP and liquids. Initially this will provide compost for agricultural and horticultural use and on completion the plant will convert the bulk of the Biomass to the Biofuel Ethanol.
"This new initiative means we will be the first Biomass to Ethanol plant in the UK utilizing Biomass recovered from waste sources. The facility will meet increasing demand for environmentally-friendly fuel across the country."
When fully operational the plant will convert 400,000 dry tones per year of recovered biodegradable material – Biomass – to at least 100 million litres of the Biofuel Ethanol, utilizing the internationally patented GeneSyst Biomass to Ethanol Process incorporating the Gravity Pressure Vessel.
More than 75 people will be employed on the site and several hundred ancillary jobs will be created for the area. The Maltings Organic Treatment Company is a joint venture between Mytum & Selby Recycling Limited and AqueGen Limited.
Larry Trachtenberg of AqueGen stated. "Ethanol fuel has been produced from Biomass world-wide since the 1850s, but only on a very small scale. Using the GeneSyst technology to process Biomass recovered from waste greatly increases the benefit. The Maltings project will be diverting this from landfill by converting it into a clean and green fuel."
The Environmental Technology Centre for Industrial Collaboration at the University of Hull has provided academic, analytical and scientific support for the project, with leading microbiologists working under a knowledge transfer partnership scheme. Dr David Calvert, ETCIC's Commercial Manager, added:
"The Maltings Organic Treatment project is at the forefront of environmental waste management and recycling in the UK and is now leading the way on green fuel production. The underlying technology is well established and offers a unique opportunity to turn organic waste into a valuable resource in a sustainable manner."
The company is now applying for a full Environment Agency licence to open up the full potential of The Maltings and is seeking planning permission for additional building on the old brewery site to house the ethanol production process.
Glenda Parkes, Director of Tyler-Parkes Partnership, the town planning consultancy acting on behalf of The Maltings Organic Treatment Company, added:
"The project demonstrates how modern technology is helping to deliver the Government's 'green agenda'. It will be an excellent utilization of an existing industrial site and will be fully in accordance with national and local planning policies."
Some 80% of deliveries to and from The Maltings Plant are scheduled to be transported by rail to minimize road traffic, with a recommissioning of the sidings which served the old John Smith's brewery on the site.