(Madrid, Spain) – Spanish oil and gas company Repsol SA plans to build what it claims will be the "first plant in Europe" in the Catalonia region to process municipal solid waste into "renewable methanol" through gasification. The investment, approved by the board of directors, amounts to more than €800 million. According to the company, 2.800 jobs will be created during the construction phase and 340 jobs upon commissioning. The plant will receive €106 million in funding from the European Union's Innovation Fund "due to its high potential for emissions reduction and the innovative nature of the project."
Graphic representation of Ecoplanta's plans to produce fuel from municipal waste. © Ecoplanta Molecular Recycling Solutions SL
The technology for this type of waste recycling was developed by the Montreal-based company Enerkem Inc. (claim: "From Waste to a sustainable Future"). Repsol joined as a new investor in 2022 as part of a financing round and acquired a $170 million minority stake in the Canadians. The companies founded the joint venture "Ecoplanta Molecular Recycling Solutions SL"
The new "Ecoplant" plant will be integrated into Repsol's industrial complex in Tarragona to take advantage of existing infrastructure. It will have the capacity to process 400.000 tonnes of municipal solid waste per year and transform it into 240.000 tonnes of fuels and circular products.
In October 2024, CWP Global joined a consortium that includes the Nuremberg-based infrastructure company Gauff to develop a 600 MW hydrogen project in Angola. The company's hydrogen portfolio currently consists of eight projects in Africa, Australia, South America and North America with a cumulative capacity of 200 gigawatts, including the PtX projects in Africa in Mauritania (Aman), Djibouti (Hayyu) and Morocco (Amun). The consortium partners from left to right: Stefan Traumann (German Ambassador to Luanda, Angola), Mike Scholey (CEO for Hydrogen, CWP Global), Julian Reichert (Head of Project Development, Conjuncta), Stefan Tavares Bollow (Managing Director, Gauff Engineering), Orlando da Mata (PCA, CPD-Sonangol), Vladimir Machado (CEO, CPD-Sonangol) © Gauff GmbH & Co. Engineering KG
The methanol will be obtained from organic waste, and the circular products from non-organic waste such as non-recyclable plastics. Commissioning is planned for 2029. This is the fourth factory of this type: a demo plant was in Edmonton, Canada, another is under construction in Varennes (Quebec, Canada) and the third is planned in Rotterdam.
The project has been delayed by several years. Initial plans were announced in April 2021. At the time, it was said that the investment decision would be made in the first quarter of 2022 and that the plant would go into operation in 2025. When Enerkem's participation was announced in April 2022, commissioning was still planned for 2026.
Mature solution for decarbonization
The renewable diesel already produced by Repsol at its plant in Cartagena and the methanol production now planned complement each other, for example for use in shipping. Both technologies are "mature" - renewable hydrogen, ammonia or the electrification of ship propulsion, on the other hand, are still in development and require "major investments in fleet renewal and fuel distribution," Repsol explains its choice.
Repsol says it wants to become the leading producer of renewable fuels on the Iberian Peninsula. In 2027, between 1,5 and 1,7 million tons are to be produced - including renewable hydrogen and biomethane - and up to 2030 million tons per year in 2,7.
In July 2023, the European Commission awarded more than €3,6 billion to 41 major clean technology projects. Repsol was also granted funding to produce renewable hydrogen in the Tarragona industrial zone using a 150-megawatt alkaline pressure electrolyzer and sell it to local customers. A digital twin is intended to enable what is described as a "flexible and optimized operating platform." This project, called "T-Hynet," is part of the "Spanish Hydrogen Network" ( SHYNE ) consortium.
Information about Ecoplanta can be found on the website.
Photo above
Step into the circular economy: Repsol is investing 800 million euros in a plant to produce methanol from municipal waste. © Repsol SA
