MEMBER PRESS RELEASE – Acorn Bioenergy launches Winchester’s first biomethane facility to heat homes and boost farm resilience

MEMBER PRESS RELEASE – Acorn Bioenergy launches Winchester’s first biomethane facility to heat homes and boost farm resilience

New facility in city’s emerging “renewable hub” has created 15 jobs and will provide enough green gas to heat more than 9,000 homes

Acorn Bioenergy, which is expected to become the UK’s leading producer of biomethane and green CO₂, has launched Winchester’s first renewable anaerobic digestion (AD) facility at Three Maids Hill.

Now fully operational and supplying renewable gas to the national grid, the plant was officially opened at a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), Winchester City Council Leader Councillor Martin Tod, local stakeholders, politicians and partner farmers.

The new facility, located alongside a solar farm and InstaVolt’s EV superhub near the A34, reinforces Winchester’s position as an emerging “renewable energy hub”. The plant has already created 15 jobs and is expected to support up to 50 positions within the wider engineering, rural and infrastructure supply chain.

Designed to process 83,600 tonnes of agricultural residues, local agri-waste and break crops annually, the site will produce more than 120 GWh of biomethane per year, enough to meet the entire heat demand of more than 9,000 homes.

By turning farming waste such as slurries, manures and rotational crops into green energy, the facility will save approximately 30,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually, the equivalent of planting 1.2 million trees or removing 15,000 cars from the road.

The site also generates nutrient-rich bio-fertiliser – known as digestate – that is returned to local farms to improve soil health and reduce reliance on imported and carbon-intensive alternatives, as well as high-purity green CO₂ for sustainable industrial uses.

The project is already delivering tangible benefits to local farmers, providing guaranteed fixed-pricing agreements that shield them from volatile commodity markets while lowering fertiliser costs through the use of digestate, as well as providing farmers with a local outlet for break crops grown as part of sustainable crop rotations.

Minister for Industry, Sarah Jones, said: “Acorn’s development will deliver secure, clean energy for thousands of homes and provide jobs for the local community in Hampshire.

“Biomethane can play an important role in reducing our reliance on imported fossil fuels, boosting our energy security and helping us accelerate to net zero.”

Alister Veitch, Head of Business Development at Acorn Bioenergy, added: “A real flagship hub for Acorn Bioenergy, we were delighted to launch the Three Maids facility, to demonstrate how renewable biogas generation can power homes, strengthen food security and support the UK’s net zero ambitions. Alongside our dozen sites in development, it is a major step towards our ambition to supply 25% of the UK’s biomethane.”

Commenting on the initiative, Nick Rowsell of West Stoke Farm, who supplies break crops to the facility, said: “Having farmed at Three Maids Hill previously, we always found the land had limited agricultural value. However, it has strong potential with this new renewable biogas generation facility which we are now providing feedstock for. Both energy security and food security are massively important to the UK, and partnering with Acorn Bioenergy helps us deliver both.”

By producing constant renewable gas, the Winchester plant complements intermittent sources such as wind and solar, strengthening the UK’s energy system and contributing to the Government’s ambition to quadruple biomethane production by 2030–2035.

Acorn Bioenergy is already constructing two further plants in the United Kingdom, alongside a dedicated gas injection hub. The company was acquired in 2022 by Qualitas Energy, a leading global investment and management platform with a dual focus on both funding and developing renewable energy, energy transition, and sustainable infrastructure.

For more information on Acorn Bioenergy, please visit: https://www.acornbioenergy.com

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About Acorn Bioenergy
Acorn Bioenergy Limited is a leading UK-based renewable energy company specializing in the production of biomethane through anaerobic digestion. By partnering closely with local farmers, Acorn converts agricultural and organic waste into clean, green energy while generating valuable by-products such as nutrient-rich bio-fertiliser and high-purity green CO₂. This closed-loop approach supports sustainable agriculture, drives rural economic development, and advances the circular economy. With several projects already under development across the United Kingdom, Acorn is pursuing its ambition to become the country’s leading producer of biomethane and to supply up to 25% of the UK’s total output. In doing so, it plays a key role in supporting the Government’s target to quadruple biomethane production by 2030–2035 and in delivering long-term value for local communities while accelerating the UK’s transition to net zero. For more information, please visit www.acornbioenergy.com.

About Anaerobic Digestion (AD)
Anaerobic digestion is a natural biological process in which organic materials, such as agricultural residues and food waste, are broken down by microorganisms in an oxygen-free environment. This produces biogas, which can be upgraded to biomethane and either injected into the national gas grid or used as a low-carbon fuel for transport. The process also generates nutrient-rich bio-fertiliser, which can replace carbon-intensive, imported fertilisers.

About Qualitas Energy
Qualitas Energy is a leading global investment and management platform with a dual focus on both funding and developing renewable energy, energy transition, and sustainable infrastructure. Since 2006, the Qualitas Energy team has dedicated over €14 billion to the energy transition worldwide. These investments have been deployed through six vehicles: Fotowatio / FRV, Vela Energy, Qualitas Energy III, Qualitas Energy IV, Qualitas Energy V, and Qualitas Energy Credit Fund I. Qualitas Energy’s existing portfolio currently comprises 11 GW of operational and development-stage renewable energy assets – including solar PV, concentrated solar power (CSP), wind, energy storage, hydroelectric power, and renewable natural gas – across Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, Italy, Poland, Chile, and the United States. Over the past five years, Qualitas Energy has generated enough energy to supply 1.2 million homes and has successfully avoided the emission of 1 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent. The Qualitas Energy team consists of c.530 professionals across fifteen offices in Madrid, Berlin, London, Milan, Hamburg, Wiesbaden, Trier, Cologne, Stuttgart, Warsaw, Wroclaw, Santiago, Durham, Bristol, and Edinburgh. Please visit www.qualitasenergy.com for further information.

Press contact
Acorn Bioenergy
Jake Setterfield | jakesetterfield@meeting-place.uk| 07584 319 396

Qualitas Energy
Henar Hernández
Global Head of Communications
henar.hernandez@qenergy.com
+34 697 11 68 72

Headland
qualitas@headlandconsultancy.com
+44 7435 546304
+44 7311 369929