Agrivert Looks to New Horizons

Having already developed significant business in the sewage sludge and composting sectors, Agrivert commissioned its first anaerobic digester in 2010. The Cassington plant in Oxfordshire, UK, was the first AD plant specifically built to service a local authority contract.

Agrivert then designed, built, owned, and operated a fleet of food waste AD plants as well as building plants for others, until it sold all its operating assets, including five composting plants, to Severn Trent Green Power (STGP) in 2018.

The AD plants, which generated circa 14MWe of power per hour, were consistently among the best performers in the UK, achieving approximately 97% of maximum output. This level of performance is only possible through excellence in both design and operations.

The portfolio was one of the first to be successfully sold in the market and set the bar for high multiple EBITDA for AD assets. Agrivert credits its successful record in designing plants with exceptional uptime—which enabled the sale to STGP—with also being an operator of the plants. Designing a plant you know you are going to operate really focuses the mind to make it easy and efficient to manage.

Whilst always engineering- and operations-orientated, up until the sale, Agrivert had been focused on delivering services to local authorities, holding over 50 contracts. Following the sale of its operating assets in 2018, the company shifted its focus to be more engineering-led. However, Agrivert still believes that operating plants is fundamental to designing good plants, as operational experience feeds back into the design process.

Hong Kong: O.Park 2

Agrivert’s Hong Kong project was one of its first significant engineering projects post-2018. The contract with the Hong Kong government involved the design, build, and operation of a 110,000-tonne-per-annum food waste AD plant, incorporating a water treatment facility and a granulation plant producing fertiliser.

Agrivert was selected for this project due to its expertise in food waste digestion. Having completed the design and build phase in partnership with two Hong Kong-based firms, Agrivert now leads the joint venture to operate the plant under a 15-year contract.

This project presented many exciting engineering challenges, such as a small footprint, strict climate requirements, and low emissions tolerances. “We have learnt a lot on this project,” said Harry. “Not only were granulation and wastewater treatment new to us, the O.Park 2 project required a new approach and innovation throughout.”

The plant now processes its full design capacity of 300 tonnes per day and exports power to the grid. There is potential for future expansion to help recycle more of Hong Kong’s food waste.

Operations and Turnaround

In 2019, Ingenious, a London-based investment fund, awarded Agrivert a contract to operate four agri-feedstock AD plants, which it managed until June 2024 before handing over to Biogen.

Initially, the portfolio struggled to deliver sustainable energy output. Agrivert collaborated closely with Ingenious to design and implement a series of capital upgrades, which more than doubled the uptime and energy output of the plants.

Although demanding, this turnaround work was immensely satisfying. Simultaneously, Agrivert supported other clients by conducting operational reviews and recommending engineering upgrades to improve underperforming AD plants.

James Andrew, Agrivert’s Chief Engineer, noted: “Diagnosing why a plant is under-performing and then designing a solution drives innovation. It also helps ensure the engineering team avoids similar issues in future greenfield projects.”

Many UK AD plants are underperforming or could be expanded, and Agrivert hopes to undertake more of this work in the future.

Beacon

With Europe committed to scaling up green biomethane production, Agrivert has partnered with Low Carbon in a joint venture called Beacon. The aim is to develop a platform to build and operate 30–40 plants in Europe over the next five years.

This aligns with the EU’s REPowerEU plan, which targets 35 billion cubic metres of biomethane production annually by 2030, requiring an estimated €37 billion in investment.

Agrivert originally focused on complex food waste AD plants but has since broadened its capabilities to handle a wide range of crop and agri-waste feedstocks. With extensive experience in project development and execution, Agrivert is well-positioned for greenfield, brownfield, turnaround, and operational projects both in the UK and internationally.