29/01/08
The government's response to the reform of the Renewables Obligation means the co-firing of regular biomass and sewage sludge will be awarded 0.5 renewable obligation certificates (ROCs) per MWh. This is greater than the 0.25 originally proposed, but considerably less than the 2 ROCs awarded to other sectors using anaerobic digestion techniques to generate energy.
This follows a reassessment of costs and recognises that "placing sewage gas in the 0.25 ROC band would fail to bring forward additional potential capacity after 2009". The original proposal was based on the assumption that biogas generation from sewage sludge is a mature and saturated technology!
There is a serious risk that reducing the amount of ROCs awarded from the current 1 to 0.5 will reduce investment in this area, one where the UK currently is at the forefront. This could have a knock-on effect on national renewable energy generation targets. We will be urging the Government to reconsider this position and place water industry anaerobic digestion on the same footing as other sectors.
Reform of the Renewables Obligation
Contact: Bruce Horton
