We know we need to move away from natural gas to clean energy sources so we can reach net zero by 2050. The current narrative on how we make this happen is largely focused on electrification, through technologies like electric vehicles and heat pumps, alongside the use of hydrogen and carbon capture and storage (CCS). One technology which hasn’t received anywhere near the same airtime is ‘green gas’, in the form of biogas and biomethane.
I’ve always been a big fan of green gas. Produced primarily through anaerobic digestion of organic matter, such as food waste, sewage, manure and crops, it can also be made through gasification of biomass or through methanation of low carbon hydrogen by mixing it with biogenic CO2. Green gas is low carbon and can even be carbon negative, if the CO2 produced when upgrading it from biogas to biomethane is captured and stored or utilised. As well as its climate positive credentials, biomethane is molecularly identical to fossil gas, which means we can inject it into our existing gas grid without any changes required by the customer.
As well as a decarbonisation story, green gas is an agricultural, economic and rural growth story. Production can be spread across the nation, providing jobs and economic regeneration to communities everywhere. Arguably, green gas production could be described as the ‘great energy leveller’. It’s not restricted by geography and by 2030 could support 60,000 jobs. Using the digestate from the anaerobic digestion process to replace artificial fertiliser or rotating food crops with energy crops helps boost soil health which is also great for the environment. For me, it’s a no brainer. Why then do we hear so little about green gas in energy sector circles?
At Future Energy Networks (FEN) we are committed to enabling growth of the sector and working with policy makers to unlock the sector’s huge potential. To help bring the industry together and support policymaking, we have recently partnered with around ten of the major biomethane producers alongside key industry associations including the Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) and the Association for Renewable Energy and Clean Technology (REA) to launch the ‘Green Gas Taskforce’. Through this taskforce, we will be generating new evidence and analysis which tests the existing industry consensus on the future potential of green gas and makes the case for the policy and regulatory changes needed to unlock growth of the sector.
There are 128 biomethane sites connected to the gas grid in Britain, equating to around 11 terawatt hours (TWh) of production capacity (plus over 500MW of biogas CHP capacity). This is enough to heat around 1 million homes, and almost certainly more than are currently heated by heat pumps. Yet, biomethane doesn’t have anywhere near the same profile. That is precisely because it requires so little change on the part of customers. Simply put, you could be heating your home with biomethane without knowing it.
Britain has been a leader in green gas over the past 15 years, supported initially by the Feed-in-Tariff and Renewable Heat Incentive schemes, and more recently by the Green Gas Support Scheme. But our European neighbours have been catching up and are forging ahead of us, with France adding hundreds of new connections every year and Denmark aiming for 100% of biomethane in its gas grid by 2030, with that figure already reaching over 40%. Green gas offers a scalable solution to reduce Britain’s reliance on imported gas and to work alongside other net zero technologies to insulate the nation from future energy price shocks – but we need to increase production to really make a difference. We need to shift it from being a marginal contributor to forming a major part of our future energy and agricultural system.
Only 2.5% of the UK’s available organic farm waste is currently used to produce biomethane, which demonstrates just how much potential there is for expansion. The 11TWh of capacity we currently have could be into three figures in terms of terawatt hours (watch this space for new research on this due out in Spring, through the Green Gas Taskforce). A figure of over 100TWh becomes significant in energy sector terms – enough to heat close to 10 million homes, or every home in the country if combined with electricity through a hybrid heat pump.
Businesses around the country are already embracing green gas and doing it brilliantly. I recently visited Wyke Farms in Somerset, where they have achieved complete self-sufficiency in renewable energy for their cheddar and butter production using a combination of electricity from solar power, biogas and biomethane, as well as injecting enough biomethane into the grid to heat 6,000 local homes and businesses.
We also attended the recent opening of the UK’s first unsubsidised biomethane plant, run by Future Biogas, with all the biomethane produced on site going directly to decarbonise AstraZeneca’s UK operations – and at no cost to UK taxpayers or billpayers. What the sector needs now is recognition of biomethane across the energy industry as a major part of the technology mix which will deliver Net Zero. We are looking for government to show real intent to grow the sector by setting ambitious targets and implement appropriate support scheme to support investment and production.
Green gas’ greatest strength is just how neatly it fits into our existing energy system, with no need for change at all on the part of the end consumer. Despite this, the CCC’s recent Seventh Carbon Budget saw only a very marginal role for green gas, instead opting for a technology mix for decarbonisation which relies on unprecedented changes from consumers, through adopting new technologies, reducing meat consumption, changing holidaying habits, and through engaging with the energy system to a far greater degree than they ever have in the past. While some changes on the part of consumers will be needed under any net zero scenario, is it realistic to aim to shift the behaviour of nearly the entirety of the population?
Why not use green gas to help by putting a low carbon version of the gas we use today into our existing infrastructure to decarbonise homes and businesses without any need for change on the part of the consumer? Green gas may currently be the ‘hidden hero’, but the time is right for that hero to take centre stage and support our nation’s goals for a cleaner, greener future.