United Utilities submits £140m plan to upgrade Ellesmere Port Wastewater Treatment Works

Plans have been submitted for a £140m scheme to introduce a new Advanced Anaerobic Digestion facility at Ellesmere Port Wastewater Treatment Works.

If approved, the facility will be upgraded to replace an existing anaerobic digestion unit with updated technology which will increase the amount of biogas that is generated from wastewater sludge whilst using considerably less energy to do so.

Advanced anaerobic digestion units break down material faster and more completely than standard systems, they also reach higher temperatures which destroys harmful bacteria and reduces the volume of sludge left over at the end.

The project forms part of United Utilities’ drive to reduce its operational carbon emissions and supports the UK’s wider transition to low-carbon energy and helps meet Net Zero 2050 targets.

Tom Lissett, United Utilities’ Bioresources and Green Energy Director explained: “The upgraded facility will play an important role in meeting future wastewater treatment requirements while helping to reduce carbon emissions.

“It is designed to deliver benefits now and enable us to deliver future innovations, including the ability to increase biogas production and capture CO2 when new technologies become more readily available.” 

Ellesmere Port Wastewater Treatment Works is one of United Utilities’ largest sites in Cheshire. It will continue to operate as both a wastewater treatment works and Bioresources treatment centre, using Advanced Anaerobic Digestion (AAD) to improve how the by-product from wastewater treatment is processed.

By making the most of existing land and infrastructure, the project has been carefully designed to minimise its footprint and avoid expansion. The facility will continue to operate as normal throughout the project.

The scheme forms part of United Utilities' wider programme to improve rivers and waterways across the North West.  It comes as the company continues to deliver the largest investment in water and wastewater infrastructure for a century. United Utilities is investing more than £13 billion to protect and enhance more than 500km of rivers, lakes and bathing waters, while safeguarding drinking water supplies for millions of customers across the region.