Multi-disciplinary engineering firm, adi Group, is playing a central role in the delivery of an ultra hi-tech world first in Swindon, Wiltshire. The £30m technology project, integrated and installed by adi Projects, decarbonises heating and transport. If replicated across the country, the technology has the potential to help the UK meet its carbon budget and waste disposal commitments in the years ahead.
The Swindon installation is due to come on line this summer, with projections indicating it will treat 10,000 tonnes of refuse and waste wood per annum, to produce 22GWh of grid quality gas – enough to heat 1,500 homes or fuel 75 heavy goods vehicles. The new technology, developed by a consortium that includes Advanced Plasma Power (APP), Cadent and Progressive Energy, scooped the Technology Award at the prestigious Energy Institute (EI) Awards.
Having integrated and installed a £5 million pilot plant in 2016 and 2017, which proved the commercial and technical feasibility of the concept, the adi Projects arm of the business is now coordinating the installation, at Advanced Plasma Power’s Swindon site. The plant is the first facility on the planet to produce a low carbon bio-substitute natural gas, BioSNG, from household waste.
Low cost solution
Green gases, such as BioSNG, are sustainable, drop-in replacements for natural gas, offering the simplest and lowest cost solution to decarbonising heat and transport. The product can be pumped into the gas mains network to be used in existing gas appliances, such as domestic boilers and ovens, or compressed natural gas filling stations.
More than 85% of adi Group’s work is self-delivered by its own engineers. With 34 specialist disciplines, the firm is able to deliver effective solutions right across the engineering spectrum. The gasification project sees the adi Projects division act as a single point of contact for the consortium, coordinating the adi Group services of adi Electrical, adi Mechanical, adi Automation and adi Healy Compressors to meet all requirements in a joined up way.
James Sopwith, left, Managing Director of adi Projects, said: “It is a privilege to be involved so closely in turning such a promising concept into a commercial reality. APP’s gasification technology has the potential to be a real game-changer. Thanks to our self-delivering model, we are putting together a facility at the cutting edge, and one that can be pivotal in solving a range of long term societal issues. Exciting times.”
Rolf Stein, Chief Executive of APP, said: “We have been impressed by adi’s work for us in the past and were pleased to select them to integrate our BioSNG demonstration project. We trust them to deliver the project on time and on budget.”