Through the Renewable Energy Directive (RED), the EU promotes the use of renewable fuels. RED includes a standardized method for classifying and calculating greenhouse gas emissions from fuels. However, uncertainties remain regarding its application in certain cases, for example regarding blended feedstocks and for integrated fuel production facilities. In this project, RED was mapped to identify value chains where different interpretations are possible and to assess their consequences. RED’s ability to reward resource-efficient concepts was also evaluated.

Several areas have been identified where we see that clarifications and amendments are needed for RED to function as a policy instrument that drives a sustainable transition of the energy system in an efficient way. The general conclusions of the project can be summarized as follows:

• RED lacks clarifications and concrete examples and is therefore generally difficult to interpret.
• RED is inconsistent.
• RED does not always reward resource-, energy-, and climate-efficient concepts.

The project has therefore developed recommendations to make RED clearer, more consistent, and better at rewarding resource efficiency.

BIOMETHAVERSE is the short name for the project "Demonstrating and connecting production innovations in the BIOMETHAne uniVERSE."

Five innovative technologies for producing biomethane will be demonstrated in five European countries: France, Greece, Italy, Sweden, and Ukraine. The production pathways to be demonstrated include one or more of the following conversion processes: thermochemical, biochemical, electrochemical, and biological.

Four of the demonstration plants will be based on biogas from conventional anaerobic digestion, while the Swedish demonstration plant built by RISE will be based on syngas from biomass gasification through Ex-situ syngas biological methanation (ESB). In all demo plants within BIOMETHAVERSE, CO2 and other intermediate products from anaerobic digestion or gasification will be combined with renewable hydrogen or electricity to increase biomethane yield. All production pathways demonstrated are non-conventional technologies, use energy and materials in a circular manner, and aim to increase biomethane production and reduce production costs.

RISE coordinates the Swedish parties in the project and contributes, together with Wärtsilä, to the design, construction, and operation of the mobile testbed for biological methanation of syngas. Cortus is the syngas producer and host for the pilot trials and receives applied research on possible syngas utilization in return. The Swedish Gas Association contributes with work on policy development in the area related to the project.

Ex-situ syngas biological methanation (ESB) is an innovative technology for biomethane production. Forest residual products such as branches, sawdust, and recycled wood are carbon sources that are not available for biomethane production with traditional digestion techniques. If the forest residual products are first gasified to syngas, they can then be further processed into biomethane through biological methanation – a type of gas digestion technique. The ESB technology thus opens the door to using forest residual products and other solid biomass as substrates for biomethane production. This significantly increases Sweden's and Europe's potential for biomethane production.

BIOMETHAVERSE aims to:

• Demonstrate increased cost-effectiveness and innovative biomethane production.
• Increase sustainability and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from biomethane production.
• Ensure scalability and replicability of the demonstrated production technologies.
• Develop policy recommendations and ensure that the new technologies are adopted by the market.

The project also aims to increase the production potential for biomethane by 66%, create 294,000 green jobs, enable reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 113 million tons, and reduce the production cost of biomethane by the target year 2030.

Methanation is a process that creates methane from other gases. The aim is to increase the production of climate-neutral methane and thus contribute to both the phasing out of fossil energy sources and a reduced dependence on imports. There are two technology pathways: catalytic and biological. In biological methanation, methane-forming microbes drive the conversion process. Another commonly used term for biological methanation is gas fermentation, which is, however, an umbrella term that also includes other techniques.

Syngas methanation is based on syngas for methane production. The value chain starts with the use of a solid material, such as residual streams from the forest industry, which is converted thermochemically through gasification or pyrolysis. The processes generate a gas phase that can be further refined through biological methanation into biomethane. Through the value chain, a low-grade solid fuel is thus converted into a high-grade energy carrier in the form of methane, which can replace fossil gas (natural gas).

RISE has worked with biological syngas methanation in the Trickle Bed Reactor (TBR) in several projects and has been part of the development of the concept. Through the technology, sustainable value chains are created with high utilization of the resources found in residual products from the forest industry. The major advantages of the biological technology pathway are its tolerance to contaminants, high selectivity to the end product methane, the lower process pressures and temperatures that can be maintained, and the lower investment threshold that provides downward scalability and makes the technology usable even for relatively small plants.

Another use of biological methanation is to upgrade raw gas (biogas) using hydrogen boost in a methanation reactor. With the help of hydrogen, the remaining carbon dioxide can be converted into methane and an increased production of methane gas is achieved. In this way, the carbon atoms are used more efficiently.

RISE is at the forefront of technology and has a number of collaborations in the field nationally and internationally. Biological syngas methanation, which is not yet available in full scale, has proven effective on a lab scale in recent years on a scale of 5-35 L reactor volume. Right now, the construction of a larger pilot plant with 5m³ reactor volume is underway and upcoming pilot runs (from 2024) will answer whether the reactor efficiency is affected by the scale-up.