ADBA welcomes Jackdaw decision as good first step to gas security

ADBA welcomes Jackdaw decision as good first step to gas security

21 October 2026 – London – The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) welcomes today’s approval of the Jackdaw gas field as a “good first step” to recognising the importance of home-produced gas instead of importing carbon heavy and expensive liquefied natural gas (LNG).

ADBA is calling on government to use the tax revenues from North Sea production, including the new Energy Wealth Fund announced today, to deliver an urgent uplift to the Greenn Gas Support Scheme budget. The scheme is fully committed, leaving projects stalled at the very moment the country needs more home-grown gas.

It is also important to note that North Sea fields are finite. Jackdaw is expected to produce up to 25 TWh of gas a year at its peak over a lifespan of up to 11 years. Comparatively, biomethane is a renewable gas that can be scaled up rather than run down. With the right support, British biomethane could exceed Jackdaw’s peak output by the early 2030s, and by 2050 produce over 100 TWh a year, around four times Jackdaw at its peak, meeting between 20% and 50% of UK gas demand while cutting carbon and methane emissions from farming and waste.

Chris Huhne, Chair of ADBA and former UK energy secretary, said: “Today’s decision is sensible: home grown gas beats imported LNG on security, on cost and on carbon. The government now has the means to go further. Reinvesting a share of North Sea revenues in the Green Gas Support Scheme would let our industry rapidly increase domestic supply of renewable gas, year after year, long after Jackdaw has run dry. That is energy security and net zero working together, not against each other.”

-ENDS-

For further information, contact:

Cameron Ball, External Affairs Lead, ADBA
e: cameron.ball@adbioresources.org; tel: +44 7964 663710

Notes to editors

About ADBA

The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) is the industry association for the UK anaerobic digestion (AD) and biogas industry. ADBA’s vision is to see the full potential of the UK green gas industry realised so it can help the UK achieve its emissions targets and other policy goals, creating a truly circular economy. www.adbioresources.org

About the AD industry 

• There are currently over 750 AD plants operational across the UK
• The entire industry digests approximately 36 million tonnes of organic material each year – organic material that would otherwise emit greenhouse gases including highly potent methane, if left untreated in landfill.
• An estimated 21TWh of biogas is produced each year by the AD industry – this green gas is either used to generate electricity and heat via a combined heat and power (CHP) unit or upgraded to biomethane and injected directly into the national gas grid.
• The industry currently delivers savings of 1% off the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions every year.
• An estimated 4,800 people are currently employed in the AD and biogas industry in the UK.
• Overall, the industry grew by 5 per cent last year as the closure of older, smaller plants was outweighed by big-scale units feeding into the gas grid.
• Fully deployed, by 2050, the UK AD and biogas industry is expected to:
  • produce over 100TWh of biomethane
  • provide between 20% and 50% of UK gas demand
  • create 60,000 jobs (30,000 direct and 30,000 indirect).
  • save the UK 27 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent – equivalent to taking 1/3rd of all cars off the road
  • heat 6.8 million UK homes with the 8 billion m3 of biomethane generated

How AD works

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is the natural breakdown of organic matter in the absence of oxygen in a container called a digester. The process extracts the energy this material contains in the form of biogas leaving the remaining organic matter called digestate – a stable, nutrient-rich substance used as a biofertiliser which restores soil health. Organic wastes typically treated through AD include food waste, animal manures and slurries, other agri-wastes, food & drink processing wastes, sewage sludge.