Brecon business makes major investment with backing from Clydesdale Bank

12th September 2012

A family-run farming business in Breconshire is diversifying with a £3 million investment in a new anareobic digester (AD) plant with backing from Clydesdale Bank.

GP Biotec Ltd, run by Paul and Gary Jones with their parents Charles and Janet, is building the facility on Great Porthamel Farm in Talgarth after securing funding from Clydesdale Bank's Gloucester Business Banking Centre. The company has also switched its full banking to Clydesdale Bank.

The Combined Heat and Power (CHP) unit is in the process of being built on the farm and will be fed with maize and waste from a local abattoir to create energy to power the farm and will also be sold to the National Grid.

Two tanks have already been installed with a further two due to be operational on the 600 acre farm by the end of the year.

Paul Jones said the family, which also specialises in beef and arable farming, has been investigating use of the technology for some time and is delighted to have secured funding to make the project possible.

"We've been looking into diversifying for quite a while now so it's an exciting time for us to see the plant taking shape," Paul said.

"This is a bespoke unit which will allow us to use large amounts of waste from the abattoir and turn it into energy.

"We've taken waste from the abattoir to use on the farm for about nine years now and developing the unit is a fantastic opportunity to put the waste to further good use and create mass energy."

Paul said the company is pleased to have received strong support from Clydesdale Bank and to become new members of the bank.

"Clydesdale Bank's approach was totally different from other banks we had dealings with," he added.

"We were hitting a bit of a brick wall trying to get financial support for the project before we were introduced to Emyr Saer at Clydesdale Bank.

"Emyr has a very strong knowledge of AD technology and looked closely at our requirements and the plans we have for the future of the business and the bank was happy to back us."

Emyr Saer, Rural Business Partner at Clydesdale Bank's Gloucester Business Banking Centre, said AD technology is a growing market which the bank is supporting.

"The Jones family has worked extremely hard to make this development possible and we are pleased to be supporting them as new members of the bank," he said.

"The plant represents a major investment for the business and will pave the way for future growth of the company while also building on its relationship with the abattoir just down the road in Merthyr.

"This is the second AD unit the bank has financed in the region recently and demonstrates our commitment to supporting the growth plans of rural businesses.

"We look forward to working closely with Paul and the rest of the family as the development progresses and witnessing the plant in full operation very soon."