New Energy World™
New Energy World™ embraces the whole energy industry as it connects and converges to address the decarbonisation challenge. It covers progress being made across the industry, from the dynamics under way to reduce emissions in oil and gas, through improvements to the efficiency of energy conversion and use, to cutting-edge initiatives in renewable and low-carbon technologies.
Spain’s first biomethane plant with ammonia stripping
27/9/2023
News
Located on a farm in the Catalonian municipality of Vallfogona de Balaguer, CycleØ has begun operation of Spain’s first biomethane facility to integrate ammonia stripping technology, turning manure into sustainable fertiliser.
CycleØ has invested €2.5mn in the development and construction of the facility, which has a maximum production capacity of 15,000 MWh/y – enough power to reduce the equivalent of 9,000 t/y of CO2 emissions.
The small-scale plant in Granja La Carbona joins another facility in Vilanant, Catalonia, to become CycleØ’s second operational installation in Spain and the company’s first fully developed, owned, built and operated facility in the country.
FNX, CycleØ’s industrial subsidiary, developed, designed and built the biogas upgrading technology used in the plant, including the proprietary, optimised membrane-based cleaning and biogas compression equipment that allow the plant to produce bio-CNG or bio-LNG with 99% purity.
The project is Spain’s first biomethane project to incorporate ammonia stripping, transforming ammoniacal nitrogen contained in the liquid fraction of the digestate byproduct of anaerobic digestion into a sustainable fertiliser suitable for use on all the farm’s crops.
Spain has the potential to generate over 163 TWh of biomethane power, according to CycleØ, but much of the feedstock needed to realise that potential is located in rural areas where it’s hard to access. As a response, the company plans to have 20 biomethane plants underway or operating in Spain by the end of 2024. These facilities represent a total investment of €50mn and will produce 240 GWh/y of biomethane.
France inaugurates biomethane plant
Meanwhile, Biogest France has inaugurated a biomethane plant in Congrier, France, that will process over 32,000 t/y of waste. With an output of 135 Nm³/h, the PowerRing plant will provide biomethane for the local distribution gas network.
The feedstock consisting of cattle and horse manure and slurry will be supplied by nine farms with an average distance of 5 km to the plant. The short supply routes help to keep the impact on the environment low. In addition, the farmers are simultaneously producing organic fertiliser, which is returned to the farm’s fields.
Biomethane is the only renewable energy source that can be carbon-negative, as it significantly reduces methane emissions from agricultural operations, says Biogest.
