Wärtsilä will supply equipment for the world’s second largest plant capable of liquefying biomethane and synthetic methane from renewable energy sources to produce carbon-neutral transportation fuel.
When operational it will have a capacity of approximately 63,000 tonnes bio-LNG per year, according to Wärtsilä. The contract was placed in March 2022 by the German energy company REEFUELERY GmbH – a joint venture of Erdgas Südwest GmbH and avanca, a company focused on sustainable energy and logistics solutions.
The facility, expected to become fully operational during the first quarter of 2024, will be located in Burghaun near Fulda, Germany. Burghaun was chosen as the preferred location for this project due to its direct access to the MIDAL, one of the most powerful gas pipelines in Germany. The central location enables optimum supply to the Alternoil filling stations – owned by the avanca group.
The plant will utilize biomethane from communal and agricultural waste materials as feedstock. The biomethane is subsequently liquefied and delivered to the Alternoil filling station network as the climate-neutral fuel REEFUEL (bio-LNG). “REEFUEL can be used in any LNG-fueled truck and contributes significantly to the decarbonization of heavy-duty transport. The construction of the liquefaction plant will reduce CO2 emissions along the entire supply chain, thereby effectively using economies of scale,” said Jürgen Muhle, CEO, of the avanca group.
