German WELTEC Biopower will develop four new agricultural biogas plants in France together with its partner Domaix Energie, producing 1.6 MW of green energy. Apart from agricultural substrates, the plants, whose construction has already started, will use sludge and organic waste such as food leftovers. For this reason they will be equipped with hygienisation units in order to utilise these substrates.
Another important innovation will concern the recovery of heat: in all four biogas plants, the residual heat will be used in a digestate dryer in order to reduce the amount of liquid manure and sell the dried digestate as fertilizer. Thanks to this, the plants will achieve a minimum energy efficiency of 70%, enabling the operators to benefit from the heat and power bonus, which is up to EUR 0.04/kWh in France.
The two 600-kW plants will use similar substrates but will differ in terms of composition and concepts. The plant in the département of Charente will have a 3,000-m³ stainless-steel digester, while the other plant in Burgundy, central France, will have two digesters with a capacity of 2,000 m³ each. The other two plants will have an electrical output of 190 kW and 255 kW, respectively. The smaller plant in Lorraine will have a 1,500-m³ stainless-steel digester and will be loaded with cattle manure from the operator’s farm as well as whole plant silage and food leftovers. Additionally, the 255-kW plant will utilise agro-industrial waste.
Two of the biogas plants are funded by the farmers, while WELTEC’s partner Domaix Energie from Gundershoffen, Alsace, and Methanor, a French biogas fund, are involved in the financing of the other two plants.
