How ADM Milling UK is Steering Energy Usage in the Right Direction

How ADM Milling UK is Steering Energy Usage in the Right Direction

Our ADM Milling locations in the United Kingdom aren’t about to sit idly by and let rising electricity costs eat into their profitability. Simon Bennett, energy manager, ADM Milling UK, highlights three initiatives underway to reduce costs and the team’s energy footprint:

• ADM Knottingley has completed its first year of using green electricity from Yorkshire’s largest hydroelectricity plant. The hydro station generates and supplies 40 percent of the site’s annual electricity requirements. This is estimated to deliver a staggering £500,000 in run-rate savings over the first five years, while also drastically reducing the site’s environmental impact.
• To recover the cost of installing and maintaining the National Electricity Transmission System, the UK’s National Grid Electricity System Operator charges users “tariffs” based on electricity usage during peak times. Through effective load management, ADM Milling has reduced its annual consumption in these periods over the past three years by 90 percent.
• The UK government’s Capacity Market is designed to ensure the national electric system has adequate capacity to meet demand throughout the year. The Capacity Market Demand Side Response (DSR) program provides an opportunity for businesses to earn money simply by having electricity flexibility. To do this, an organization must prove it can reduce its electricity consumption — or increase its amount of self-generated energy to achieve a net demand reduction from the grid — upon request. This involves a manual turn down with four hours’ notice, and demand-reduction events will normally last for between 1-2 hours. All ADM Milling sites have now successfully passed the National Grid’s tests, allowing us to be part of this program.