Green gas capacity in the United Kingdom witnessed a significant surge, growing by 16.7% in the past year, according to the latest report from the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA).
Currently, there are 720 anaerobic digestion (AD) plants operational in the UK, with 575 producing electricity, six generating heat and 139 upgrading biogas to biomethane.
This figure represents a slight decrease from the previous year, attributed to the closure or consolidation of some plants following the end of support schemes like RO and FiT.
However, the total installed biogas capacity has increased to 3,285 MW, up from 2,814 MW last year, marking a 16.7% rise due to the commissioning of several large-scale biomethane plants in 2023 and 2024.
This rapid expansion mirrors projections outlined by the International Energy Agency (IEA) in response to global concerns over gas supply stability post the Ukraine conflict.
Chris Huhne, ADBA chair, said: “The impressive growth in green gas last year shows what the sector can do, and underlines the realism of our objective of 1,000 new plants by 2030.
“We are on course to overtake the nuclear sector, in terms of energy produced, during 2031 if not earlier.
“The growth last year also puts the UK near the higher growth projection globally from the IEA, which is for 22% annual compound growth to make the biogas sector the best performing renewable sector after solar.”
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