In London, sewer fat will power world’s largest grease-powered electricity plant

Stay Green Oil has already offered those with waste oil the opportunity to re-use it, rather than throwing it away. In the UK, discarded oil and fat is causing problems in the capital’s sewer systems, and now 2OC aims to tackle the problem with the world’s largest fat-powered renewable electricity plant. According to Thames Water, which has agreed a GBP 200 million, 20-year contract with the company, the ‘fatbergs’ caused by restaurants and kitchens putting oil and fat down the drain create 40,000 blockages in London’s sewers annually, at a cost of GBP 1 million a month. Now 2OC will collect the fat, as well as pick up waste oil and grease from local restaurants and manufacturers. The material will serve as fuel for a combined heat and power plant in Beckton, generating 130 Gigawatt hours per year of renewable electricity – some of which will power Thames Water’s sewage and desalination plant, while some will heat residents’ homes . The scheme aims to provide green energy, as well as a solution to London’s sewer problems. When launched in 2015, the plant will be the largest in the world to solely run off fat-based products. Are there other ways to simultaneously clean up waste products polluting the environment while also using them as a renewable energy source?