UK’s greenest military base
Home to the frontline squadrons of the RAF’s elite Tornado Force, RAF Marham is set to become the first British military base to run nearly entirely on green electricity. Over 95% of its electricity is now to be fuelled by the fermentation or ‘anaerobic digestion’ (AD) of locally-grown crops in a nearby Norfolk plant – built and run by Future Biogas, one of the UK’s largest AD companies.
In the AD process specially-cultivated bacteria are added to tanks full of harvested crops, like maize, sugar beet, rye or potatoes. As the bacteria breaks these feedstocks down, they release gas, which is siphoned off. It can then be supplied directly to the National Grid as green gas or, as is the case for RAF Marham, burnt to produce electricity. The leftover organic waste from this process is then dried, separated and used as natural fertiliser to help grow more crops.
On 31 January 2019, this landmark green energy partnership, signalling the UK military’s transition away from fossil fuels, is to be marked by a launch at RAF Marham. The Right Honourable Tobias Ellwood MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Ministry of Defence, will be in attendance.
The AD plant – Redstow Renewables in Swaffham, Norfolk – generates 4.5 MW of electricity every hour, which can power 350,000 LED bulbs. Its new green energy supply to RAF Marham will result in an annual reduction of the Ministry of Defence’s emissions by 14,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2). It will also deliver around £300,000 of annual electricity savings.
Minister for Defence People & Veterans Tobias Ellwood MP said: 'RAF Marham is leading the way as Britain's first green military airbase. The biogas fuel is a truly green and sustainable solution, helping us tackle climate change, support the local economy and save taxpayer money.
'I hope that this plant can act as a model and we can see more sustainable energy schemes rolled out across other military bases.'
The plans for this venture have been in development since February 2015. The Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), the part of the Ministry of Defence that manages the Defence Estate, has collaborated with colleagues at Future Biogas, energy company EDF and Crown Commercial Services, the government’s procurement agency, to develop a green, sustainable and cost-effective electricity supply for RAF Marham.
At the outset the DIO undertook a feasibility assessment, to assess the benefits that could be derived from a clean energy supply. As well as saving money and reducing carbon emissions, it was determined that connecting to the AD plant would increase power resilience at RAF Marham, by providing multiple pathways to electricity.