An ambitious plan to turn pig poo and food scraps into power is being developed in northern Victoria.
The power plant, glasshouse and piggery expansion, called Waranga Green Energy, will be built at Stanhope, west of Shepparton. For over five years, it has been the dream of piggery owner John Bourke.
Aerial view of a piggery at Stanhope that will be expanded with a power plant and glasshouse.
The project is set to transform the quiet town of Stanhope, providing an additional 30 jobs and estimated $10 million per year for the local economy. The aim of the property is to develop a closed system for power and waste on the farm.
Pig poo and straw from the intensive farming environment will be used, along with other food waste, to create power in an anaerobic digester plant to be built nearby. The plant will be used to power the piggery and provide heat to an expanded and upgraded farm.
Next to the power plant, a 4.6-hectare greenhouse will be built, using power and heat to grow leafy green vegetables, year round, to supply gaps in the seasonal markets.
The goal is to sell up to 20 million lettuces and over 20,000 pigs per year, along with liquid and solid fertiliser (a bi-product from the power plant) to the farm’s customers. The price tag for the Waranga Green Energy and farm project is around $75million which Mr Bourke is planning to raise through superannuation and foreign investment.
He has hired a company to raise the capital needed. An additional $1 million grant has been awarded by the Victorian State Government. Mr Bourke is confident he will get the investment dollars he needs because of the high return from the project.
Construction is set to begin in early 2017 with Mr Bourke expecting the farm to be fully operational and sending food to market within the year.