Taranaki firm developing micro-biogas plants
Pictured: Example of a Finnish-designed modular micro-biogas unit
4 December 2025
GasNZ member TIS in Taranaki is branching into biogas development, working with environmental engineering and manufacturing company, Armatec Environmental, and regional development agency, Venture Taranaki.
TIS, an engineering and instrumentaion company, is keen to develop its skills and staff knowledge in renewable gas equipment and processes.
Its new biogas project will complement its initiatives in the hydrogen equipment production and processing area, business development manager Ellie Hills says.
TIS is currently gearing up to build containerised ‘micro anaerobic digestion’ (AD) plants for pilot scale trials of locally available feedstocks, close to the major feedstock sites.
It is hoped to have the first pilot-scale plant commissioned early next year. TIS has already secured local feedstocks for its trials, together with end users for the digestate produced.
The design of the micro-plants will be replicable and modular, with up to five containerised pilot plants developed, customised to the specific needs of each feedstock site and provider, and the desired end use.
Uses could include biogas production for industrial heat; as a feedstock for chemical manufacturing industries; CO2 production for horticulture and industry; as digestate for on farm use; or refined into biomethane to replace natural gas for either local use or injection into the gas grid.
“Modules could include the likes of add-ons for odour control and hydrogen sulphide removal if needed – sourced from our project partner Armatec – or could be biogas to biomethane processing units,” Hills says.
The capacity of the pilot units will allow assessment of the commercial viability of the feedstock site and Anaerobic digestion production methods.
Working with Venture Taranaki, TIS’s pilot project is part of what is eventually intended to be a regional hub for biogas produced from organic waste, and could be the precursor to the development of a commercial large-scale biogas production plant in Taranaki.
GasNZ intends following the progress of TIS’s biogas development project as an ongoing case-study, sharing its experiences with the wider gas and waste processing sectors.