New Project to Transform Waste into Bio Substitute Natural Gas

The first project that demonstrates the use of waste to produce bio-substitute natural gas (Bio-SNG) has today been announced by National Grid (UK), Advanced Plasma Power and Progressive Energy.

The project, which uses waste as a feedstock to produce Bio-SNG, will be based at the Advanced Plasma Power Gasplasma facility in Swindon, UK. It will demonstrate the technical feasibility and commercial viability of the waste to Bio-SNG process. The three partners will work together to design, install and test the operation of a demonstration plant.

The plant will take the waste-derived and energy rich synthesis gas from the existing Gasplasma process, and convert it to meet the specification for injecting it into the gas network. Bio-SNG could play a crucial role in the decarbonisation of heating and help reach the UK's binding carbon reduction targets. As part of its work on future energy scenarios, National Grid has forecast that renewable gas could be a vital part of the energy mix in the coming decades.

It is estimated that renewable gas, of which Bio-SNG may be a major source, could account for as much as one fifth of the UK’s heat requirement by 2050.