Circular economy
It could become a case study of circular economy, a virtuous example of how it is possible to replace the production of energy of fossil origin with alternative sources. About two months ago in Conselve (Padua) the first plant in Italy was inaugurated which allows the production of biomethane from a grappa distillery, the Bonollo distillery, connecting directly to the Italgas distribution network. Obviously everything starts from the grapes that we normally imagine are used only to obtain wine and which instead from the grinding of dried grape skins, which are rich in cellulose and nutritional substances, are destined for the production of animal feed and partly for feeding company boilers in order to obtain the steam to distill and the heat to dry the pomace itself, thus avoiding the use of fuels of fossil origin.
The transformation process
However, the raw material must be combined with a transformation process that requires a great technological effort. The new plant produces biomethane starting from the liquid residues of distillation activities for an average daily quantity of 10,000 cubic meters and an annual total of approximately 2.5 million cubic metres, corresponding to the average consumption of around 3,000 families. This quantity of renewable gas makes it possible to replace, in a circular economy logic, an equivalent amount of gas of fossil origin and to distribute it on the network to households and businesses, with important benefits in terms of decarbonisation of consumption. The connection of the Bonollo Umberto Distilleries to the distribution network is managed thanks to cutting-edge digital technology developed in-house by Italgas. This is the Dana (Digital Advanced Network Automation) application which allows remote management of the injection point and, based on the continuous analysis of the gas quality before its injection into the network, the possibility of issuing orders to the plant and remote instructions for regulating flows.
“Every cubic meter of biomethane obtained here – underlines Elvio Bonollo – is a further fruit of the generosity of the vine, in a supply chain which, after obtaining the wine in the cellar, finds in Bonollo the maximum expression in terms of circular economy through the extraction and the enhancement of precious by-products in a zero waste logic. Giuseppe Bonollo who started our activity as distillers 115 years ago and who passed on to us the precious value of being ahead of the times through innovationwould be proud to be able to know that the family business, in addition to making the best grappa in the world, contributes to the decarbonisation of consumption by introducing precious gas of non-fossil origin into the network”.
Comparison with France and Germany
The initiative aligns Italy with the best practices of France and Germany, the first countries in Europe for connections to the distribution network, and is consistent with the path traced by REPowerEU which indicates biomethane as the energy source intended to replace 25% of natural gas from Russia. “Biomethane – explained the Chief Executive Officer of Italgas Reti, Pier Lorenzo Dell’Orco – is an already ‘mature’ renewable source, widely available and capable of making an important contribution to the ecological transition. AND for this reason that in the 2022-2028 Strategic Plan we have allocated significant investments to facilitate the connection of new plants to the distribution network. The Bonollo Umberto Distilleries plant is the first directly connected to the distribution network of an industrial sector that is very important for the local economy, from which other operators in the sector can draw inspiration for an increasingly sustainable approach”.
The plans for the future
Biomethane is today the readily available renewable source: its potential is such that various studies agree in setting the share of consumption that it can cover within the Italian requirement at over 10%. Today in Europe, production plants are mainly connected to distribution networks. In France, the country ahead of all in this respect, there are 365 plants (an increase of 151 units compared to 2020) which produce 620 million cubic meters of biomethane every year. It is not the only benchmark at the continental level.
Germany is the largest producer with 1.2 billion cubic meters of biomethane per year and 242 plants. In Italy there are 54 biomethane production plants (47 connected to the transport network and 7 to the distribution network), with an increase of 19 units compared to 2020, and an annual production of 479 million cubic meters (0.6% of the share of gas consumption). In the near future, according to sector estimates, 50 new plants are expected in Italy with a potential production of 300 million cubic meters overall.