Case Story Denmark

Fredericia biogas upgrading: the first full scale upgrading plant in Denmark opens the way for use of biogas for biomethane fuel production

May 2014

INTRODUCTION

Biogas recovered from anaerobic digestion is widely used to generate energy in the form of heat and electricity. Electricity is readily exported to national grids. However, heat is very often not used outside the biogas plant and consequently a significant proportion of the energy in the biogas is wasted. An attractive alternative is to upgrade the biogas to pipeline or vehicle fuel quality biomethane. Biomethane can be readily injected in the natural gas grid and used in exactly the same way as natural gas or used directly as a vehicle fuel. The first full scale biogas up-grading plant in Denmark, was built by Dong Energy, one of the leading energy groups in Northern Europe, in the autumn of 2011. The plant upgrades the biogas produced by Fredericia municipality’s wastewater treatment plant, and delivers the upgraded biogas to the national gas grid.

MISSION AND VISION

Policy makers in Denmark agree that the biogas sector has been a success to-date, and that there is great potential for expansion in the future. Both the energy and the agricultural sectors are aware of the great potential and benefits of biogas. Upgrading and grid injection is considered a must in a situation where the Danish CHP-plants cannot use all biogas produced and where residual heat is not utilised. The idea of establishing a biogas up-grading plant in Fredericia arose in 2008, as a stepping stone in the “climate partnership” signed between Fredericia Municipality and Dong Energy. The agreement is based inter alia on the objective of the municipality to have the municipal buses running on environmentally friendly gas, on one hand, and on the other hand on the overall strategy of gradually switching to green energy production. In the same “green” context, Fredericia Municipality has launched the project, “Fredericia Forms Future – From North Sea Gas to Fredericia Gas”, where biogas has a central role. The project is a public-private innovation partnership between Fredericia and Dong Energy’s technology company, REnescience, aiming to make Fredericia a municipality that uses waste and wastewater as resources to create value and jobs, through production of renewable energy.