The first sod cut for a new biogas plant, which is first of its kind in Denmark, was taken Friday at the port in Frederikshavn. Next summer passenger vessels and freight vessels can bunker liquid CO2-neutral biogas at Port of Frederikshavn. Also, the heavy lorry traffic can operate on the green fuel.
The demand for green energy sources for the heavy transport sector is massive, and now MAKEEN Energy and Nature Energy ensure that the heavy lorry traffic and the maritime sector get a new green alternative to the fossil fuel sources.
Mayor of the municipality in Frederikshavn, Birgit S. Hansen, is happy that the green milestone is reached in Frederikshavn.
- It is important for us to follow the development and always search for new ways to ensure the green transition. The possibility to offer green fuel for the transportation on the roads and at sea in the future is a milestone, which is also part of positioning us as a green municipality.
Also for Port of Frederikshavn, the plant marks a green future, states the CEO at the port, Mikkel Seedorff Sørensen:
- For us the first sod cut marks another green initiative at Port of Frederikshavn. The new plant will greatly strengthen Port of Frederikshavn’s position as green junction point, and the location in Frederikshavn concurrently emphasises the port’s strategically important location between the shipping route into the Baltic Sea and the highway network.
Nearly 75,000 vessels pass by Port of Frederikshavn each year and will therefore be able to bunker the liquid biogas close to their shipping route.
Biogas also for lorries
While gas driven vehicles are a relatively rare sight on the Danish roads, it is very different in our neighbouring countries. There are for instance, 50,000 such lorries, busses, vans, and personal vehicles on the Swedish roads.
Thereby, the biogas does not only ensure independence from fossil natural gas, but also an energy source, which can ensure the transition of the heavy transport sector, explains CEO at Nature Energy, Ole Hvelplund:
- Biogas is a natural resource equivalent to sun and wind. At the same time, biogas has the great advantage that vessels and lorries, which can run on biogas, already exist. The only thing missing is a gas station, he says and adds:
- We will change that now. The demand is there, and the green transition demands green alternatives to fossil fuels.
The plant at Port of Frederikshavn can produce 20,000 tons liquid biogas (LGB) a year, however it can be scaled up to produce 120,000 tons a year.
The future is green
Nature Energy and MAKEEN Energy’s common plant is called Nordliq (Nordic Liquefaction) and is designed by MAKEEN Energy, also in charge of the construction.
Bo Larsen, COO at MAKEEN Energy, sees a green future:
- At MAKEEN Energy we have many decades of experience with solutions within gas, and it is amazing that this experience can now be a springboard for the development of green fuel and the transition of Danish industry. LBG will be an important part of our energy arsenal in the future, so Nordliq is a major milestone.
Biogas accounted for 25 percent of the gas in the Danish gas grid in 2021, while the expectation is that this share will reach nearly 40 percent this year.
Facts about Nordliq
- Cools biogas to minus 160 degrees Celsius, making the gas liquid and 600 times smaller
- An investment of a three-digit million DKK amount, of which Nature Energy accounts for 2/3 of the investment, while MAKEEN Energy accounts for 1/3
- Port of Frederikshavn owns the area and establishes the necessary infrastructure
- Can deliver 20,000 tons liquid biogas a year
Facts about MAKEEN Energy
MAKEEN Energy is a global market-leader within technology solutions for the energy industry. With roots in the gas industry MAKEEN Energy delivers projects and equipment for amongst others, bottled propane, liquid natural gas/biogas, plastic waste conversion and extraction of fibreglass from decommissioned wind turbine blades.
Facts about Nature Energy
Nature Energy produces nearly 1/3 of the biogas in the Danish gas grid and is with its 12 plants in Denmark and more on the way in the USA, Canada, France and the Netherlands, one of the world’s largest producers of biogas.