Swindon & Wiltshire News
UK’s largest biochar facility set to open in Wiltshire
The UK’s largest biochar facility set to open in Royal Wootton Bassett in Wiltshire, with a £24 million investment from Pure Data Centres Group.
Biochar looks like charcoal. Made by burning waste food and wood in an oxygen-free environment and, when used in agriculture, construction and water treatment, it locks carbon back into the ground for centuries.
The substance was recently used by council contractors in Chippenham to create one of the Uk’s first net zero road surfaces.
The high-quality carbon credits it generates can be sold to the big tech firms to meet their sustainability goals.
The operator of sustainable hyperscale cloud and AI data-centres is building the facility through its climate-tech R&D subsidiary A Healthier Earth.
Pure DC’s investment has been endorsed by the UK Government across the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
Minister for Energy Michael Shanks MP said: “This investment is an excellent example of industry stepping up to pioneer innovative climate solutions.
“Greenhouse gas removal technologies, including biochar, will play an important role in us meeting our net zero ambitions, helping industry to decarbonise whilst delivering economic opportunities such as the new, high-quality jobs in Wiltshire that this facility will create.”
Minister for AI and Online Safety Kanishka Narayan MP said, “Data centres power growth and innovation, from NHS digital services and online payments to the AI tools people use at work.
“Part of being an AI leader means backing new ways to drive progress responsibly and sustainably.
“This investment in Wiltshire shows how companies are turning to the UK to help shift the dial – deploying carbon removal technology to deliver cleaner, greener innovations.
“It shows how AI leadership and a climate-conscious approach to innovation aren’t competing ideals, but two sides of the same coin.”
At full capacity, the PureBiochar facility will produce 11,500 tonnes of biochar each year, removing up to 18,500 tonnes of carbon – equivalent to the annual emissions of almost 6,000 UK homes.
The site has begun phase 1 of the programme, which includes equipment commissioning and site readiness.
Biochar production will start later this month with subsequent, phased investments, subject to planning and permitting approvals.
Locally, the PureBiochar facility will create new green-technology jobs and specialist training opportunities.
It will regenerate a brownfield industrial site, returning it to productive and sustainable use.
It will also support local Net Zero targets through circular-economy reuse of local waste materials such as joinery offcuts and garden waste.
Acting as a hub for low-carbon innovation, the facility will link local suppliers, universities and communities to one of the UK’s most progressive climate-technology initiatives.
The facility will meet European Biochar Certificate (EBC) standards with excess heat from production generating electricity to help power the site.
Dame Dawn Childs, CEO of Pure DC, said: “At Pure DC we’re constantly looking for the overlap between delivering environmentally responsible digital infrastructure, and outsized commercial opportunity.
“In biochar we’ve hit a sweet spot in being able to support the sustainability requirements of our hyperscale customers; further differentiating our platform; and having expertise and production capabilities in a fast-growing complementary market where demand far outstrips supply.”
“Leading tech firms are already contracting millions of tonnes of biochar annually. By building this capability, Pure DC is well placed to meet that demand, leverage existing customer relationships, and generate value for our platform.
“The PureBiochar facility will create credible, science-based carbon removal solutions, which global businesses can rely on.”
Alastair Collier, chief R&D officer at A Healthier Earth said: “Projects like this show how industrial infrastructure can operate in harmony with community and environmental goals.
“The data-centre sector has the scale, capability and incentive to pioneer carbon-removal solutions that work, and this project is proof that climate action and commercial growth can move forward together.”
