Energy-from-waste operator enfinium will roll out new carbon measurement technology across its operational sites by the end of 2024, the group says which will enable the measurement of carbon removals once carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is installed across its fleet.
Radiocarbon dating – also known as carbon-14 dating – is used successfully in a range of sectors, from archaeology through to human health. When applied to energy from waste facilities, it can determine the amount of biogenic or fossil-derived CO2 emitted from waste feedstock.
Around 50% of the unrecyclable waste produced by society is currently made up of biogenic content, such as food, plants and soiled paper or card, which has naturally absorbed CO2 from the atmosphere when growing and releases it back when transformed into energy.1 When combined with CCS technology, the biogenic CO2 can be stored permanently underground rather than released, resulting in the net removal of CO2 from the atmosphere.
By measuring the amount of CO2 generated from biogenic sources, enfinium said it will be able to robustly calculate the amount of durable carbon removals its facilities will generate in the future. In May, enfinium’s Net Zero Transition Plan set out an ambition to lead an investment of £1.7 billion to install CCS across its operational facilities, creating up to 1.2 million tonnes of carbon removals a year in the process.
Plans in prospect
Carbon-14 measurement equipment, supplied by ENVEA, has already been successfully trialled at enfinium’s Kemsley facility since January 2024 – the only EfW facility with a Contract for Difference in the UK. The firm will install the technology across all four of its operational sites by the end of this year. It will also be installed at the two sites in construction, Kelvin and Skelton Grange, when commissioned from 2025.
Jane Atkinson CBE, Chief Operating Officer, enfinium said the company “is transitioning into a carbon removals business and with carbon capture and storage technology deployed across our facilities, we could generate over 1.2 million tonnes of durable carbon removals every year.
“Robust monitoring, reporting and verification of emissions is critical to scaling the carbon removals market and building confidence from buyers, investors and policymakers. By using carbon-14 technology, we will be able to measure the amount of biogenic carbon we are capturing and storing from society’s unrecyclable waste.”
