As the future of North Sea gas supplies faces uncertainty, climate-friendly biogas from farm manure is finding its way into the natural gas network.
For a small additional fee, natural gas customers can purchase a biogas certificate attesting that natural gas is replaced by biogas in their gas grid.
This gives customers the chance to contribute to lowering CO2 emissions. Burning natural gas emits about 2.3 kg of CO2 per cubic meter, while biogas is completely CO2 neutral. In January, HMN group – the country's largest gas company – became the first company to send biogas from manure into the natural gas grid.
Among the first customers are two councils that previously used natural gas for heating kindergartens, schools, cultural centres, sports centres and town halls.
Cutting CO2 emissions
One of the councils, Silkeborg, will cut its CO2 emissions by 3,500 tonnes each year, nearly 14,000 tonnes over the next four years.
“Our goal is that the municipality is CO2 neutral by 2030,” Silkeborg's mayor, Steen Vindum told Jyllands-Posten newspaper.
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Hansens ice cream has also signed up to use biogas.
“We want to make our energy consumption more sustainable,” Hansens co-owner Anders Eibye told Jyllands-Posten. “The biogas agreement cuts our CO2 emissions by 60 tonnes per year.”
A few private residential customers have signed up. A biogas certificate costs a typical single family home about 75 kroner per month, while saving about four tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.
