Since the beginning of 2008, biogas has been produced at the Schwandorf facility from regional raw materials. This biogas is then treated to reach natural gas quality and fed as biomethane into E.ON Bayern’s natural gas pipeline system.
At the Schwandorf plant, about 16 million cubic meters of biogas can be obtained annually from roughly 85,000 tonnes of local renewable resources. Maize, grass and intercrop silage is used. The output of natural gas quality biomethane, upgraded from filtered biogas, is approximately 1,000 cubic meters per hour.
Fritz Wolf, managing director of E.ON Bioerdgas, said: We assume that by 2030 about 10 % of existing natural gas consumption in Germany can be covered with biomethane. And this can be done without adversely affecting areas needed to grow food and feedstuff. The biomethane consumption anticipated in 2030 corresponds to the energy needs of five million households.
Frank Mastiaux, managing director of E.ON Climate & Renewables, said: In the field of renewable energies, biomethane plays an important role in our portfolio of promising technologies. The commissioning of the Schwandorf plant is another milestone in our program for growth, which we will systematically implement by 2010 with an investment volume of up to E6 billion.
