Landfill gas

EDL Energy UK’s landfill gas power stations have a combined generating capacity of approximately 49 MW. The portfolio includes its largest UK facilities at Rainham, Pitsea and Mucking in Essex, as well as six smaller sites. EDL Energy works with landfill owners and waste-management partners to manage the gas safely, maintain the collection infrastructure and recover useful energy from waste.

Landfill gas is produced as organic material decomposes within a landfill. It contains methane, a potent greenhouse gas, which might otherwise escape into the atmosphere or be flared. EDL’s facilities capture the gas through a network of extraction wells and underground pipes. After moisture and other impurities have been removed, the processed gas is used to fuel generating engines that produce electricity exported to the grid.

By generating energy from landfill gas, we support local energy production and strengthen the UK’s energy resilience, which reduces reliance on imported energy.  We also deliver additional environmental benefits by abating methane emissions which are circa 80 times more potent than CO2 at trapping heat in the atmosphere over a 20 year period.

Anaerobic digestion / Biomethane

The Sandhill Biogas Plant has been operating since 2011 and services local and national customers. The facility produces up to 750 cubic metres of biomethane per hour which is injected into pipelines operated by Northern Gas Networks. It also features a 4.5MW combined heat and power (CHP) plant, generating electricity and heat onsite. This energy supports local industry, with the excess supplied to the national electricity grid. In addition, the facility uses advanced technology to capture approximately 5,000 tonnes of high-purity, biogenic CO₂ each year which is used by industry.

Sandhill plays a vital role in the UK’s transition to a circular, low-carbon economy. By converting food waste, kerbside waste and agricultural feedstocks and wastes into renewable energy, the plant provides a sustainable alternative to landfill—effectively recycling waste in line with the UK’s waste hierarchy.

Each year, Sandhill produces enough electricity to supply approximately 8,000 homes, and enough biomethane to power another 6,000 households. By decarbonising the gas supply and generating electricity that supports local industry and communities, Sandhill demonstrates the value of anaerobic digestion in creating a cleaner, more sustainable energy future.

In addition, Sandhill produces a nutrient-rich biofertiliser (digestate) that is spread on local fields. It is more cost-effective and sustainable than traditional synthetic fertilisers and can improve crop yields.

EDL Energy UK acquired the Plant in 2025, which still operates as GWE Biogas today.