III - Boosting Europe’s biomethane production
“Once the technologies are developed to the point of commercialisation, they can greatly help meet the REPowerEU targets for biomethane production.”
Oriol Casal, SEMPRE-BIO project coordinator
The EU-funded SEMPRE-BIO(opens in new window) project aims to diversify the portfolio of technologies for biomethaneBiomethaneis chemically identical to natural gas, but produced sustainably from renewable sources such as biomass. production, while also lowering their costs. A range of innovative new biomethane technologies could give Europe new, clean sources of energy. “There are several technological partners who will scale up their technologies and develop them to the gates of full-scale implementation,” explains Oriol Casal, senior R&D project manager at Cetaqua(opens in new window) – Water Technology Centre in Spain, and SEMPRE-BIO coordinator. Some of the technologies under development include biological methanationMethanationis the conversion of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide into methane by the addition of hydrogen. of biogasBiogasis a mixture of methane, carbon dioxide and trace gases produced by the microbial decomposition (fermentation) of organic wastes. and CO2, syngasSyngas is synthetic gas consisting mainly of carbon monoxide, hydrogen and carbon dioxide. methanation, small-scale and decentralised cryogenicCryogenicmeans at very low temperatures. upgrading and PEM electrolysisPEM electrolysisis the separation of water into hydrogen and oxygen using electricity, performed across a solid electrolyte.. These will be developed in three case studies in Belgium, France and Spain. The aim is not just to build and operate demonstration plants for these technologies. The SEMPRE-BIO consortium is also establishing European Biomethane Innovation Ecosystems, or EBIEs, which will foster growing communities along the entire biomethane chain, including key actors such as gas utility companies, municipalities and research centres. These will generate new, shared technical expertise, and speed the development of large-scale and cheaper biomethane technologies. Businesses will also be able to better source their potential customers, which will further work to speed uptake. The various biomethane projects are collaborating to prepare policy recommendations, which will maximise production and uptake of biomethane under the REPowerEU plan. The EBIEs are currently being developed, and case studies will be carried out through 2023 and early 2024, with full operation expected by mid 2024. “Once the technologies are developed to the point of commercialisation, they can greatly help meet the REPowerEU targets for biomethane production,” says Casal. The project is developing this potential on three fronts: synthetic biomethane, non-digestible feedstock and small-scale decentralised biogas plants. “We want to express our most sincere gratitude for the funding and this chance at paving the European biomethane outlook of the future,” Casal adds.