challenge faced by farmers. “There is also the amount of Capital Expenditure required to set the scheme up. It depends on the farmer’s attitude to borrowing, or indeed, the level of borrowings they already have, which might preclude them from further in- vestment.” But Mr Matthews says that for farmers who are interested in di- versification, now is a good time to explore their options. “In the long term, renewable energy is an ef- fective way for farmers to boost or supplement their income,” he says. “Solar PV cells are getting


cheaper and more efficient by the day and they are also compara- tively easy to install. Those farm- ers with a transformer on their land will be best placed to exploit future storage and release oppor- tunities.” So, what does the future hold


Almost a quarter of farm businesses generate green energy


interest but it also offers a sepa- rate income source. We have seen a substantial increase in solar en- ergy on farms in the Midlands, ei- ther as stand-alone arrays or on buildings. “Poultry is a thriving sector of agriculture in the region and it is quite common for smaller farm- er, or a farmer looking for an addi- tional source of income, say to sup- port a son coming to the business, to branch out into solar power.” Many new poultry sheds are


now built with PV panels and some farmers have gone the ex- tra step of also installing an AD plant to digest the litter at the end of the growing cycle – so they make money from the chickens, the so- lar, and the heat and electricity from the AD plant.


Popular


“Biomass has proven very popular, especially with farmers who have a large supply, whether it be from their own timber supplies or buy-


ing matter to feed the biomass. We have also seen wind turbines be- ing built in the region but there have been issues around the plan- ning, making it a more difficult op- tion for the average farmer.” Mr Matthews warned that diversification into farm ener- gy does have its challenges, par- ticularly in the conception stage. “Each scheme is different but on the whole, planning authorities or the local community objecting to planning proposals is the biggest


for renewable energy in the re- gion? “A future area for growth is battery storage plants,” says Mr Matthews. “The renewable en- ergy that is produced on-farm is stored in large batteries for lat- er use. When the National Grid wants extra supply for a short term, the grid will be able to ac- cess the energy in the battery for a few seconds, paying the farmer for the energy or electricity taken. “There is also a growing trend for installing anaerobic digest- ers. But the very high capital ex- penditure and ongoing mainte- nance and feeding of the digester means it is not the right choice for every farmer.”


bioenergy crops ‘can boost farming’ “


the UK. It says the UK could ded- icate a greater area to bioenergy crops whiel taking into account other demands for land in the UK. Called Increasing UK Biomass Production Through More Produc- tive Use Of Land, the report brings together those findings to set out a suggested approach for deliver- ing a substantial energy crops sec- tor in the UK. It says that planting around 1.4 Mha of second generation non- food bioenergy crops such as mis- canthus, short rotation coppice, willow and short rotation forest- ry would make a significant con- tribution to delivering the country


There are opportunities for the sector


to grow Hannah Evans


a cost- effective, low-carbon ener- gy system.


This would be equivalent to around 7.5% of the total agricul- tural area of the UK.


Best practice


Steadily increasing the amount of bioenergy crops in the UK out to the 2050s would allow the sec-


tor to ‘learn by doing’ and devel- op best practices, as well as moni- tor and manage impacts on other markets and the wider environ- ment, the report says.


ETI bioenergy strategy man-


ager Hannah Evans said: “De- livering a substantial UK ener- gy crops sector whilst balancing the demand for land use from oth- er sectors will require an increase in land productivity and a reduc- tion in food waste throughout the supply chain.


“The market for second gener- ation energy crops is nascent and requires support but there are op- portunities for the sector to grow.


“As the UK prepares to leave the European Union, there is an opportunity to restructure farm- ing support in a way which pro- vides long-term clarity and sup- port to farmers and encourages the sustainable growth of the UK biomass sector.


“This could place a value on the wider environmental benefits growing second generation ener- gy crops can make to the farm- ing landscape, reducing the risk to farmers by providing a degree of income security.” The full report can be down- loaded at http://bit.ly/Biomass- Report


OCTOBER 2017 • MIDLAND FARMER 35


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