With fixed feed-in tariffs for biogas and its recently announced target of reducing the high proportion of nuclear in the energy mix from 75% to 50% by 2025, France is now one of Europe's most dynamic markets for biogas and biomethane production. The package of sustainability measures passed by the French government aims to increase the share of renewables from the current 14.2% to 32% by 2030.
This is good for the environment and welcome news for biogas plant operators like Regis Marie. Production started recently at his 340 Nm³ EnviThan plant in Étréville, Normandy, and the facility now feeds into the >60-bar network run by local network operator GRTgaz. "The EnviThan project is something of a premiere, since it's the first time we're feeding biomethane into the high-pressure natural gas grid at 64 bar," explains EnviTec's project manager Andreas Kley. Here, EnviTec Biogas is making good use of experience from Munich-based BAUER KOMPRESSOREN. "The piston compressor compresses the upgraded biomethane from 9 bar to 64 bar, which means it fits perfectly into our tailor-made plant design," Andreas Kley explains further.
Production at the 1 MW Agrienergie SAS plant run by operator Régis Marie started back in 2012, and is operated exclusively on organic waste and consumer food waste.
In this way, waste materials that would otherwise require cost-intensive disposal can be used to generate electricity and bio natural gas - and a profit for the operator.
The new upgrading plant Vitaligaz is also operated exclusively with organic waste and consumer food waste.
Innovative digestate treatment
The new plant in Étréville is also equipped with innovative digestate treatment technology from EnviTec subsidiary A3 Water Solutions GmbH. Currently this plant is under construction and is expected to be commissioned in the second quarter 2018.
Anaerobic digestion of organic waste produces digestate, which will be treated in the digestate treatment plant using the multi-phase separation (MPS) technique. This generates both, clean water, which will be routed directly into a receiving water, and a high-value fertiliser.
Complementing the solid/liquid separator, the ultrafiltration unit and the reverse osmosis unit, a second reverse osmosis stage is also installed that concentrates the fertiliser from the upstream stage again so as to further minimise the final volume. In addition, the use of hot filtration also reduces the energy needed for the treatment process by over 50%.
In what is now the company's eleventh year in the French market, Christian Ernst, managing director of EnviTec Biogas France, expects strong demand to continue for biogas plant technology Made in Germany' by the company from Lohne and Saerbeck. To date, the twelve-strong team at the biogas all-rounder's branch office has constructed a total of nine plants. Ernst: "Another four plants are now being built, and we've also had a large number of enquiries for new projects."
About EnviTec Biogas AG
EnviTec Biogas AG covers the entire value chain for the production of biogas, including the planning and turnkey construction of biogas plants and biogas upgrading plants as well as their commissioning. The company takes charge of biological and technical services on demand and also offers full plant and operational management. In addition, EnviTec also operates its own biogas plants. In 2011, EnviTec Biogas expanded its business operations into the direct marketing of upgraded biomethane as well as the marketing of green electricity and balancing energy. With a presence in 14 countries worldwide, EnviTec Biogas AG is represented by its own companies, sales offices, strategic partners and joint ventures. In 2016, EnviTec generated revenue of 162.9 million and EBIT of 4.2 million. The EnviTec Group currently has around 440 employees. EnviTec Biogas has been listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange since July 2007.
Contact:
Anne Selzer
EnviTec Biogas AG
Tel: +49 2574 8888-245
Email: a.selzer@envitec-biogas.de
