METHAGRID
A group of academic and industrial partners1 officially launch the METHAGRID project at the Châlons-en-Champagne Trade Fair. This regional programme combines anaerobic digestion2 and biological methanation3, with the aim of enhancing the production and recovery of renewable gas in the Grand Est region.
The METHAGRID project uses a biological methanation process to increase biomethane production. It aims to enhance the energy and economic recovery of biogas produced by anaerobic digestion in the region. This innovative process converts carbon dioxide (CO2), which is naturally emitted during the anaerobic digestion of organic matter, into biomethane in the presence of hydrogen. It functions in complement to anaerobic digestion, creating significant added value for the entire biogas production sector.
The recipient of the IAR Competitiveness Cluster label and winner of the GRAINE call for projects launched by the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) in 2018, METHAGRID began in the first half of 2019. This two-year programme includes a laboratory research phase at ARD (a company specialising in industrial biotechnologies, plant extraction and plant chemistry) and a pilot-scale phase at the European Centre for Biotechnology and Bioeconomics (CEBB), both of which are located at the Bazancourt-Pomacle biorefinery near Reims.
The METHAGRID project is a new illustration of regional progress in the development of renewable gas. The Grand Est region is at the forefront of France’s biomethane4 injection, with 17 sites operating in 2019 (out of 91 in France in total)5. This continuous and easily storable renewable energy provides the regions with tangible solutions in terms of support for agriculture, the circular economy and waste processing, land planning and the creation of local jobs.
1 The consortium consists of Cristal Union, GRTgaz, Agro-Industry Research and Development (ARD), the Vivescia group, the start-up TMA-process, the Industrial Agro-Biotechnologies (ABI) URD of AgroParisTech and the CentraleSupélec Biotechnology Chair (CS).
2 Anaerobic digestion is a process in which organic matter is decomposed in the absence of oxygen. It produces a renewable gas - biogas - and digestate, an alternative to chemical fertilisers. Once purified, biogas becomes biomethane, which can be injected directly into existing networks and then used for domestic and industrial purposes or as fuel.
3Methanation is a process that recombines molecules in order to make carbon dioxide (CO2) or carbon monoxide (CO) react with hydrogen, producing recoverable methane in the existing networks for all types of use.
4 See Renewable Gas Panorama 2018. p24
5 Source: GRTgaz biomethane dashboard - June 2019