Ghent (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Green electricity production begins through the conversion of wastewater collected from Ghent’s residents and those of Genk and Dendermonde. Aquafin’s water purification facilities now operate with a recent installation to transform wastewater into power.
A new biomethane installation at Aquafin’s water purification sites turns wastewater from Ghent, Genk, and Dendermonde communities into green electricity for energy distribution. The wastewater sludge provides biogas that undergoes an upgrading process to become biomethane before it enters the Fluvius natural gas network.
The gas infrastructure enables homes to apply their renewable biogas energy for heating purposes or cooking needs instead of its previous restriction to on-site power generation. Through the new system, Aquafin can efficiently meet demand by supplying renewable gas from its 4 upgraded plants to approximately 2,650 families each year.
Biological purification processes carried out at Aquafin’s treatment facilities allow microorganisms to degrade dissolved pollutants within wastewater while generating surplus sludge. The sludge travels to an on-site fermentation plant where biogas production takes place.
The energy efficiency of natural gas exceeds raw biogas because it contains less methane but higher CO₂ concentrations. Aquafin implements a bio-gas upgrading system that concentrates methane to make it operational for transmission through the Fluvius gas distribution network.
The upgraded biomethane is distributed through the renewable gas network for residential use. Each year, this system supplies electricity to 800 families living in Ghent. The on-site electricity generation with unprocessed biogas previously created energy losses because the raw biogas received no further distribution. The biomethane process now reaches maximum efficiency by making sure all gas energy potential gets used.
What is the current state of Biomethane production from wastewater in Belgium?
Belgium continues to focus on renewable energy development through biomethane production, which is receiving growing attention from wastewater management programs.
The European Biogas Association reports that Belgium generated approximately 0.5 TWh of biomethane throughout 2022, and wastewater treatment facilities continue to increase their production capacity. Aquafin manages Flanders’ water purification as its leading company throughout the region, operating 330 wastewater treatment facilities that contain 12 sludge digestion systems that produce biogas.
These plants generated electricity from biogas through combined heat and power (CHP) units before the biomethane upgrades reached 40-50% energy efficiency on average.
Moving biomethane into the gas distribution network through injection has led to greatly improved efficiency levels since upgraded biomethane can achieve energy utilisation at 90%. The four upgraded installations located in Ghent, Genk, Dendermonde and Antwerp generate biomethane to serve 2650 residences yearly, yet Ghent specifically holds the capacity to serve 800 homes.
Worldwide adoption of biomethane stands at 10,000 households according to Fluvius, yet the company plans to expand under the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED III) as it demands gas grids to contain 45% renewable energy by 2030.
Yearly sewage treatment by Belgium’s wastewater sector amounts to 1.3 billion cubic meters, which contains an estimated sludge fermentation potential that could produce 100 million cubic meters of biogas annually, sufficient to supply electricity to 50,000 homes.
Biomethane production growth forms a central part of the 2023 Green Gas Action Plan, which sets the target at 4 TWh by 2030 through the expansion of gas supply from wastewater sources.
