Climate-neutral fermentation through CO₂ capture

Alco Bio Fuel, Messer Benelux and Ijsfabriek Strombeek have invested in a CO₂ capture process at the Alco Bio Fuel ethanol refinery in Ghent. As renewable ethanol is produced, 160,000 tonnes of CO₂ are captured annually for use in other sectors – avoiding the need for CO₂ of fossil origin. At Alco Energy Rotterdam, an additional 400,000 tonnes of CO₂ is captured yearly.

CONTRIBUTION TO EU PRIORITIES:

• Climate strategy: European renewable ethanol production is integral to meeting EU climate objectives, and it makes a strategic contribution to energy independence and food Ethanol production creates not just renewable fuel to reduce emissions from road transport, but also high- quality and high-protein animal feed. In this project, it also creates CO₂ for use in greenhouses and beverage applications.
• Innovation: European ethanol biorefineries are constantly innovating and improving their ePURE members’ ethanol reduces emissions by more than 75% on average compared to fossil petrol. Thanks to capturing the biogenic CO₂, the emission savings of ethanol can be as high as 95%. With the new innovations come additional co-products to reduce Europe’s fossil dependence.

WHERE

Belgium / Benelux

Project championed by