THE South Marston biofuel plant got the go-ahead back in March 2017 but the company operating it quickly ran into problems.

Biofuels producer Go Green Fuels built and ran the plant in Swindon that set out to produce synthetic natural gas from household and residual waste.

Though originally intended to be a £23-million five-year proof of concept project, challenges around installing the technology and ensuring it worked, along with recruiting and training staff, brought delays and saw costs balloon up to £35 million.

Both the UK’s Department for Transport and the Environment Agency were involved in securing an £11 million government grant to help get the project up and running.

The assets at the plant were put up for sale after Go Green Fuels went into administration and £29 million had been invested in it up to that point.

At the time, specialist news outlet Energy Census reported that delays to the key plasma arc furnace technology and problems securing funds for a project overspend had a knock-on effect for the plant's completion.

Advanced Biofuel Solutions Ltd has stepped in to get the ambitious project back on track.

FULL STORY: £10m green energy plant 'will put Swindon at heart of the low-carbon economy'