Saputo Dairy Australia renewable energy project goes live
17 February 2026
Saputo Dairy Australia (SDA) is pleased to announce a key milestone in its environmental sustainability efforts with the go-live of its purpose-built biogas to energy solution at its Allansford manufacturing facility.
This innovative project is set to significantly enhance the site’s environmental performance by removing up to 14,000 tonnes of CO2 annually from the environment, the equivalent of taking 3,000 cars off the road.
Utilising advanced Capstone Microturbines, this custom solution converts biogas waste into renewable power and heat, thereby reducing the site’s reliance on the electrical grid and allowing for other electrification projects in the region, while also generating up to 25 percent of the facility’s total electricity usage during peak production.
“This project is a testament to our commitment to environmental stewardship and innovation,” said James Moyle, SDA’s General Manager of Engineering and Strategic Projects.
“As part of our long-term vision for success in Australia, our investment in renewable energy is supporting a resilient and sustainable dairy industry while safeguarding the environment and fostering positive environmental change in our communities.”
Optimal Group, contracted to deliver the leading-edge technology for this project, brings specialised expertise in cleaner energy solutions to ensure SDA extracts the most benefit and efficiency from its state-of-the-art microturbine system.
Craig Dugan, CEO of Optimal Group, said, “Saputo is demonstrating their strong commitment to sustainability by installing this flagship renewable energy system. Optimal is delighted to have partnered with Saputo to deliver this turnkey project.”
“As companies seek to reduce their Scope 1 and 2 emissions, hard to abate industry sectors have limited options to decarbonise. Often there is insufficient power available in the grid, or the temperatures their processes require cannot be delivered via electrification. Projects such as this are important to demonstrate the role of biogas in the path to net zero.”
Supported by a $1 million grant through Sustainability Victoria under the Victorian Government’s circular economy policy, Recycling Victoria: a new economy, this project was one of 24 successful projects in the Waste to Energy – Bioenergy Fund.
This transformative project is enabling SDA to harness nearly all of the biogas generated
on-site to deliver sustainable energy savings.
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About Saputo Dairy Australia
Saputo Dairy Australia produces, markets and distributes a wide range of high-quality dairy and non-dairy products for the domestic and international markets including cheese, dairy alternative cheese, fluid milk, extended shelf-life milk and cream products, cultured products and dairy ingredients. Saputo is a leading dairy processor in Australia and is part of Saputo Inc., one of the top ten dairy processors in the world. Saputo Dairy Australia products are sold in several countries under well-known brand names such as Caboolture, CHEER, Cracker Barrel*, Devondale, Great Ocean Road, Liddells, Mersey Valley, MG Ingredients, Mil Lel, Sheese, South Cape, Sungold and Tasmanian Heritage.
Visit us online: www.saputodairyaustralia.com.au | www.saputo.com
*Cracker Barrel is a registered trademark of Lactalis Heritage Dairy used under licence.
About Optimal Group
Optimal Group is an Australian-owned energy solutions business at the forefront of innovation and application in the energy sector and prides itself on being “in the problem-solving business” for its customers and partners. They offer a one-stop shop for its clients with services from feasibility, engineering to project delivery and lifetime service, support and monitoring.
