Foresight targets N Ireland bio

The Foresight Group-managed Recycling and Waste (RAW) Fund is investing £10.5m in two anaerobic digestion plants in Northern Ireland.

RAW, in which UK Green Investment Bank (GIB) is an investor, will provide  £8.7m for a 3MW plant near Ballymena.

Further co-investment in the project includes £4.4m from the Foresight AD EIS Fund, £8.7m from Invest Northern Ireland and £1.5m from Xergi.

Xergi is contracted for engineering, procurement and construction and operations and maintenance for the project, which is being developed by Stream BioEnergy.

It is expected to be one of the first plants in the world to be fuelled solely by poultry litter.

The plant will create up to 100 jobs during construction, with a further 11 jobs created when the plant becomes operational in 2017.

RAW is also investing £1.8m in the 0.5MW Gorthill facility in Eglington, Country Londonderry.

SQN Capital Management is providing £1.8m to the project, which will use grass silage, poultry litter and cattle slurry as the feedstock.

Williams Industrial Services will act as EPC and O&M contractor on the Gorthill plant.

Foresight Group partner Nigel Aitchison (pictured) said: “With the financial close of these two AD projects, the £50m RAW fund is now 46% deployed.”