| Energy
Government figures show huge growth in biogas for electricity and heat
New official figures show 40 % more renewable electricity was produced from biogas from waste and farms in 2015 compared to 2014 .
T he government ’ s annual Digest of UK Energy Statistics ( DUKES ), published today [ 28 July ], also reflects growth in biomethane to grid with the generation of heat from anaerobic digestion more than doubling . Key figures include :
• AD installed electrical capacity in waste and farming increased from 238MW in 2014 to 286MW in 2015
• Electricity generated from AD increased from 1,019GWh in 2014 to 1,429GWh in 2015
• Electrical capacity for sewage gas increased very slightly , from 215MW to 216MW
• Electricity generated from sewage gas increased from 846GWh to 888GWh , and heat from 67.7ttoe to 73.1ttoe as the water industry continued to drive more efficiency from AD assets
• Use of waste and farm AD for heat ( on site biogas or biomethane to grid ) more than doubled from 42.9ttoe to 95.5ttoe
The publication follows the 2016 ADBA Market Report , which showed that the industry has
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continued to grow in early 2016 , but warned that the prospects for future growth are being held back by restrictive and uncertain government policy .
Commenting , ADBA Chief Executive Charlotte Morton said , “ These figures back up the stellar growth of the UK industry over the past two years – 40 % more biogas electricity from waste and farms , more than double the amount of renewable heat , and continuing improvements in efficiency in the water sector .
“ However , as our Market Report showed earlier this year , opportunities for future growth are at risk . Using existing technology and feedstocks , the AD industry could be four times bigger than it is today – but government decisions to scale back electricity support , and uncertainty over heat and waste policies , mean that we could lose as much as 250MW of potential capacity over the next two years .
“ That ’ s enough to increase our tight winter electricity capacity margin by 10 %, delivered by 2018 . Overall , we could meet up to 30 % of household gas demand , saving infrastructure costs for replacing heating systems and reinforcing the electricity grid . It ’ s now time for the government to set policies on
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