For many years, Australia has had plenty of potential for biogas but relatively little visibility as a biomethane market.
That is beginning to change.
I have been watching developments in anaerobic digestion and biogas internationally for many years, and Australia is now one of the countries I think is particularly worth watching.
The important change is not simply that more people are talking about biogas. It is the increasing interest in upgrading biogas to biomethane so that renewable gas can potentially replace fossil natural gas in applications where direct electrification may be difficult.
Why Australia Has Considerable Biomethane Potential
Australia has many of the ingredients needed for a substantial biogas and biomethane industry.
These include agricultural residues, livestock manures, food and beverage processing wastes, municipal organic wastes, sewage sludge and other biodegradable materials that can potentially be treated through anaerobic digestion.
Historically, the economics of biogas projects have often centred on using the gas locally, particularly for heat or combined heat and power.
Biomethane changes the possibilities.
Raw biogas typically contains methane together with a substantial proportion of carbon dioxide and smaller quantities of other gases and contaminants. By removing carbon dioxide and treating the gas to the required specification, the methane-rich product can potentially be used much more like conventional natural gas.
That opens possibilities including gas-network injection, industrial energy use and renewable transport fuel.
Renewable Gas Can Do Something Electricity Cannot Always Do Easily
I am wary of arguments that present renewable gas and electrification as though one must defeat the other.
They solve different problems.
Where electricity can efficiently replace fossil fuel use, electrification may make excellent sense. But some industrial processes, heavy transport applications and existing gas infrastructure present more difficult decarbonisation challenges.
In those circumstances, biomethane produced from appropriate wastes and residues may have a valuable role.
It also has the advantage that anaerobic digestion does more than produce energy. Properly designed projects can simultaneously provide organic-waste treatment and produce digestate containing plant nutrients and organic matter.
From Individual Projects to an Industry
The interesting question for Australia is therefore no longer simply:
"Can biomethane be produced here?"
Clearly it can.
The more important question is whether individual projects will develop into a sufficiently connected market involving reliable feedstock supplies, gas upgrading, appropriate standards, infrastructure, investment and long-term demand for renewable gas.
That transition from a collection of projects to an established industry is what makes the present period interesting.
I recently updated my longer article examining the subject, including Australian biomethane projects, policy and the developing renewable-gas market:
Biomethane in Australia: Projects, Policy and the Emerging Renewable Gas Market
I expect this will be a page that needs updating again as the Australian market develops.
Bringing This Old AD News Blog Back to Life
I have also decided to start posting here again after neglecting this blog for a while.
Rather than duplicate the longer articles published elsewhere, I intend to use this blog for shorter observations on anaerobic digestion, biogas and biomethane developments that I think are worth drawing attention to.
There is certainly no shortage of developments to discuss.
Steve Last
Chartered Civil & Environmental Engineer (MICE)
Chartered Waste Manager (MCIWM)
Chartered Environmentalist (CEnv)
