The fund – Recycling and Waste LP - will focus on smaller-scale recycling and waste projects across the UK. It will be managed by the Foresight Group LLP which will raise at least a further £50 million from private sector co-investors to match the GIB’s investment. The fund already has an extensive project pipeline in place.
The new funding was announced during a visit by the Minister to the Birmingham BioPower project, currently under construction in Tyseley by Carbonarius. The £47 million project is already well advanced and when open will divert 67,000 tonnes of recovered wood from landfill per year for the production of electricity. The facility will be able to generate enough power to supply more than 17,000 homes with the recovered wood supplied by a local small business, JM Envirofuels Ltd.
GIB supported the Tyseley project through a previous investment in a Foresight managed fund.
“This investment by the Green Investment Bank will be used to fund biopower projects that will put the UK at the forefront of this innovative green technology, turning local waste wood to electricity” said Matthew Hancock MP. “Today I have been able to see first-hand the work that is being done to get projects off the ground. This state of the art plant in Birmingham will be the first of its kind in the UK. It uses a new type of gasification system and will not only power 17,000 homes and recycle waste more efficiently but will also boost the local economy and create 100 local jobs.”
Shaun Kingsbury, the Chief Executive of GIB, added that the new facility is a great example of modern, advanced technology infrastructure currently needed by the UK. It is the first time the technology has been used in the country and the investment will benefit the local economy through the provision of wood that would otherwise have gone to landfill. The GIB has been able to support a wider range of smaller projects right across the UK through investing its capital through funds, an important and successful part of the bank’s investment strategy.
The Birmingham BioPower project will be a key element in the creation of sustainable skilled jobs while contributing to the country’s energy security and waste management objectives. It will create 19 full-time jobs once operational.
Image courtesy of Foresight Group (left to right) Shaun Kingsbury CEO of GIB, Matthew Hancock MP and Nigel Aitchison, partner of Foresight Group, inspecting the Tyseley Site.
For additional information:
