ADBA welcomes UK government’s biomethane support in Clean Flexibility Roadmap

The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) has welcomed the UK government’s newly published Clean Flexibility Roadmap, which for the first time broadens the role of biomethane beyond domestic heating and recognises its value across multiple sectors including transport, industry and power generation.

Released last Wednesday (23 July), the roadmap outlines a strategy for integrating flexible, low-carbon energy technologies into the UK system.

It references biomethane 17 times, with key proposed actions including collaboration between the government and the National Energy System Operator (NESO) to define biomethane’s role in dispatchable power, as well as regulatory steps by Ofgem and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) to increase biomethane injection into the gas grid.

Dr Gareth Mottram, Policy Lead at ADBA, described the publication as a "massive shift" in government thinking: “Until now, biomethane has largely been discussed in the context of domestic heating. For the first time, a government document makes the case for injecting biomethane into the gas network for use in peak and inter-seasonal balancing through existing gas turbine power stations. This aligns with the argument we made in our *Role of Green Gas in Net Zero* report published last December, so it’s a particularly satisfying read.”

The roadmap comes hot on the heels of NESO’s latest Future Energy Scenarios, which includes 65TWh of biomethane by 2050 — the strongest indication yet that policymakers are beginning to take the sector’s potential seriously.

Despite the progress, ADBA cautioned that neither publication fully acknowledges biomethane’s potential in carbon removal through bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS).

“Biomethane upgrading can offer negative emissions more cost-effectively than any other technology,” Dr Mottram added. “Factoring that in, the case for scaling up biomethane becomes even stronger — not just as a green gas, but as a cornerstone of the UK’s cost-effective route to net zero.”