Bio LNG project

Bio-LNG: fuel for low CO2 heavy goods transport

VNG subsidiary BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien GmbH is involved in a pioneering joint venture in the production of climate-neutral LNG (liquefied natural gas). The raw material for the virtually CO2-neutral fuel is biomethane, which is upgraded biogas.

LNG has taken on a whole new meaning with the energy crisis: liquefied natural gas is one of the essential keys to diversifying our natural gas supply sources. LNG is now coming to Germany in much larger quantities from the USA, Canada or the Arab region. In liquid form, natural gas can be transported in special tankers. It is returned to its original gaseous state in several new terminals on the coasts of Western Europe and Northern Germany and fed into the gas network.

Renewable energy for commercial vehicles

 

In its bio-variant, however, LNG can also be produced in Germany and serve primarily as a biogenic fuel for truck transport. Several thousand trucks are already running on this fuel in Germany. LNG vehicles generate about 50% less noise than diesel models. Emissions of particulate matter and nitrogen oxides are also significantly lower. Bio-LNG also reduces a truck’s CO2 emissions to almost zero.

With the joint venture BALANCE EnviTec Bio-LNG GmbH, the VNG subsidiary BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien GmbH is involved in the production and marketing of climate-friendly Bio-LNG. Together with its partner EnviTec Biogas AG, BALANCE is planning a liquefaction plant in which biomethane from German production will be conditioned for use in LNG commercial vehicles. By 2024 at the latest, the plant is expected to produce up to 200 metric tons of almost carbon-neutral bio-LNG every day. This amount can be used to power more than 3,000 trucks in an environment friendly manner.

How does the bio-LNG plant work?


The biomethane produced in the surrounding area is transported via the gas network to the plant near Berlin. There it is cooled down to -150°C. The electricity used to liquefy the biomethane is also generated from biomethane.  The fluid bio-LNG is then continuously collected by tanker trucks for delivery for LNG filling stations or directly to truck fleet operators. Bio-LNG can be blended with fossil LNG without a problem.

The plant can also be used by third parties, for example biogas facility operators who want to use this as an additional marketing option for their product. The Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK) has recognised the project as eligible for funding.

What is the greenhouse gas reduction quota?


With the greenhouse gas reduction quota, the government wants to ensure that more renewable energies are used in the transport sector. If a truck fleet operator brings more than 5,000 litres of fossil diesel or gasoline into circulation per year, it must compensate for this by using corresponding quantities sustainable biofuels. The German government provides several compliant options from which to choose, including biogas or bio-LNG. Bio-LNG can therefore make a major contribution to meeting the quota in truck fleets, for example, and thus avoid possible penalties in addition to an immediate beneficial climate effect.

More Info at www.zoll.de

BALANCE Envitec Bio-LNG GmbH & Co. KG

Production of bio-LNG from the biomethane volumes

balance-envitec-bio-lng.de