The facility has the capacity to treat 11,500 tonnes of household and business waste per year, with the feedstock to be supplied by Gwynedd council, under a 15-year contract with the firm which has now officially begun.
Gwynedd council originally selected Biogen as the preferred bidder for its contract to design, build and operate the facility in March 2012 (see letsrecycle.com story).
GwyriAD is the first of three plants to be built in Wales by Biogen, with facilities scheduled to be constructed in Waen, Rhuallt near St Asaph, and at Bryn Pica in Rhondda Cynon Taf.
Richard Barker, chief executive of Biogen, said: This has been a tremendous team effort from Biogen and its partners and contractors. We are excited to have successfully completed the 12 month build and commissioning phase of this project and to be now transitioning into full scale operation.
We are looking forward to working with Gwynedd council to encourage residents and businesses to recycle as much food waste as possible and make the plant a local success story.
‘We are excited to have successfully completed the 12 month build and commissioning phase of this project and to be now transitioning into full scale operation.’
Richard Barker, Biogen
The more waste we can divert from landfill, the more potential savings there are to council tax payers, and the greater the positive impact on the environment.
Collections
Biogen is also working with Gwynedd council to expand its food waste collections to serve local businesses in the coming months.
And, according to the company, food waste treated at the plant will generate electricity for the national grid while also producing a biofertiliser to be used on local farmland. It is believed that the anaerobic digestion (AD) plant will generate enough electricity to power 700 homes a year.
Gwynedd Council environment cabinet member, councillor Gareth Roberts, said: I am delighted that Gwynedd is leading the way in the use of state-of-the-art technology. The GwyriAD plant is the first facility of its kind commissioned by a Welsh Council.
We will now be encouraging even more of the countys residents to make sure that they use the weekly brown food bin, so that all food waste is now sent to Llwyn Isaf to create green energy.
His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales was given a guided tour the facility in July shortly after it was completed (see letsrecycle.com story).
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