A German company has developed a process which combines ethanol, biogas and fertilizer production at a single location.
Verbio is based in the former East Germany and has a plant located at Zorbig. Their motto is ''from the farmer to the consumer and back to the field."
A sister company called Marka buys crops from farmers in a 50-75 kilometre radius of the plant. The key energy crop is rye . . . but they can also use wheat, triticale and corn. The crops are turned into silage.
Chemical engineer Dr. Oliver Ludtke says the raw materials are made into starch for ethanol. The proteins, fats and cellulosis structures are converted into biogas. The residual minerals are converted into bio-fertilizer, which is used by farmers for the next harvest.
Nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium are produced. Ludtke says it provides growers protection from fluctuating fertilizer costs, which closely follow the world price of oil.
There is a 90 per cent conversion of raw material into energy. The process also results in reduced carbon dioxide emissions that already meet the European Union targets for 2015.
Starting this month, the biogas is being piped into Germany's natural gas distribution system. This is important because the country currently imports 70 per cent of its energy needs, mostly from Russia. Germany wants to become less dependent on foreign fossil fuels. It has set a goal to double renewable energy production to 18 per cent of its needs by 2020.
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