GREEN fuel created from slurry off Cornish farms will be used to power the local authority’s road maintenance vehicle fleet.

In what is thought to be the first project of its kind in the world, manure slurry from six Cornwall Council-owned dairy farms will be converted to biomethane by Newquay-based clean energy company Bennamann.

Bennamann has already been trialling its green fuel in a tractor and in Cormac’s pothole repairing ‘tarmac hotboxes’. Now its patent-pending gas-capture technology, which turns farm waste such as cow manure and grass cuttings into zero-carbon fuel, will be installed in sealed slurry lagoons on farms which are part of the Cornwall Council estate. The £1.58m Council-funded pilot will see Bennamann collect?and?upgrade the?biogas?produced?at the farms?before delivering it?to?Cormac to fuel a fleet of 77?converted road maintenance?trucks.

If successful, the programme could be rolled out to hundreds of small-scale farms across Cornwall, creating significant opportunities for farmers to diversify their income streams, save on operating costs, and contribute to helping fight climate change.

Bennamann’s work to develop its pioneering engineering method over the past two years has been supported by the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Growth Programme’s ‘Energy Independent Farm’ project, financed?by the?European?Regional?Development?Fund?and led by Bennamann in partnership with the University of Exeter and Chynoweth Farm Partners.??

Meanwhile, the biogas project is one strand in Cornwall’s transition to a zero-carbon vehicle fleet by 2030. Along with a new electric bikes scheme for Council staff, over the coming months the Council will also be introducing a new fleet of electric pool cars, as well as piloting electric vans and Fire Service vehicles.?

Edwina Hannaford, Cornwall’s cabinet member for climate change and neighbourhoods, said:?“As we work on tackling the climate emergency and our COVID recovery,?this?zero-carbon?pilot?will not only?transform our Cormac fleet and?cut emissions,?it?brings?investment?to?our farms and our agricultural and technological sector in Cornwall?to?create long-term, quality jobs in the green economy.?

Carbon neutral

“Biomethane could play an important role in helping Cornwall become carbon neutral by 2030 and this new technology, developed by an innovative Cornish company, will allow small-scale farmers to join the growing biomethane market for the first time.”?

Deputy Leader?Adam Paynter, whose portfolio covers Cornwall Council Farms Estate, said: “This capital investment in first-of-a-kind, covered,?slurry lagoons can provide a commercial return?for farmers?and enable a rollout across all dairy farms in Cornwall, nationally – and potentially globally.??

“Farmers will also benefit from better slurry storage and use, savings on fertiliser and electricity bills.”?

Chris Mann, Bennamann co-founder and chief executive, said: “Bennamann is passionate about delivering a local clean energy revolution that brings a commercially viable, sustainable production and distribution of small-scale farm biomethane to the marketplace. This ground-breaking pilot represents a significant milestone in achieving that ambition.

“We are proud to be a Cornish company that has the potential to radically change the global energy market and?look forward to delivering a successful pilot that will put Cornwall at the forefront of pioneering renewable energy innovation.”

Al Hoare, who’s group central services director for Corserv and manages the Cormac fleet, said that testing of the biomethane was still ongoing but that initial data suggested the new technology could be “gamechanging” for Cornwall.

“Each pothole repair unit converted to run on fugitive biomethane could reduce CO2e emissions by five tonnes per year,” he said.

“This is the equivalent volume to an average hot air balloon and would take five native broadleaf trees to offset over their lifetime (which is approximately 100 years).”