Renewable biogas
Biogas – renewable energy from the region
Biogas is already an important building block and, in the future, promises to become a reliable source of electricity and heat with renewable energy. As one of the largest biogas producers in Germany, our subsidiary BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien GmbH produces biogas at 40 locations in northern and eastern Germany. With a rated thermal output of 241 MW can be supplied more than 227,000 households with energy each year.
Sustainably produced
Biomethane is produced from renewable raw materials and organic residues and waste from regional material and economic cycles. The carbon produced in this process was previously absorbed from the atmosphere by plants and thus moves through a significantly shorter-term carbon cycle than is the case with the use of fossil fuels. As a result, biomethane can replace fossil natural gas and reduce greenhouse gas emissions over its entire life cycle.
Advantages of biogas: available, renewable, versatile in application
Biogas is renewable and can be used directly in combined heat & power facilities at the biogas facility to generate renewable electricity. It can also maintain grid stability when a stable base load is required or the load fluctuations from renewable energies such as solar or wind must be balanced. This is because reserves of biogas are always in stock and can be produced and stored regardless of the weather. It also plays a leading role in shaping the heat transition. It can provide district heating in the direct vicinity of the biogas facilities.
The quality of the biogas produced is initially variable. Once processed into natural gas-grade biomethane, it can be fed into the existing gas network and made available to consumers even further afield.
Contribution to the security of supplies
Biogas also provides an additional source of gas. As a regional product, it makes a decisive contribution to Germany’s greater independence in energy supply. This is one of the reasons why VNG has invested heavily in the development and expansion of biogas production in recent years. With 40 locations in Eastern Germany as well as in Lower Saxony, BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien GmbH has become one of the most important players in the German biogas market.
BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien GmbH
BALANCE is a subsidiary of VNG AG and the infrastructure investor CVC DIF, and employs over 200 staff. The company bundles VNG’s activities in the field of alternative energies and energy efficiency technologies. BALANCE focuses on comprehensive professional project development and participation in biogas and biomethane projects.
Glossary
Produced during the fermentation of biomass. It can be used in CHP plants for on-site electricity generation or processed to natural gas quality. The resulting biomethane can then be fed into the natural gas network
Renewable biogas with a high methane content suitable for feeding into the natural gas grid.
Law in Germany that regulates the preferential feeding of electricity from renewable sources into the power grid.
The rated thermal output is the maximum fuel energy that can be supplied simultaneously to a combustion unit, based on the lower heat value. The type of fuel used is irrelevant..