Second-Generation Bio-ethanol Plant Opens in Denmark with First Year's Output Already Sold

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--One of the world's first and largest second-generation bio-ethanol plants has been opened in Kalundborg, Denmark. The plant has the capacity to produce up to 5.4 million liters of cellulosic ethanol, making it the largest such plant in Europe, and the largest in the world after KL Energy Corporation's (OTC:KLEG) (Rapid City, South Dakota) plant in Upton, Wyoming. However, potential customers will need to wait, as the first year's production has already been sold.

The Danish plant was built by Inbicon (Fredericia, Denmark), a subsidiary of Danish energy company DONG Energy (Copenhagen). To date, Inbicon has invested more than 50 million euros ($80 million) in the project. The plant is located adjacent to an existing DONG power plant, the coal-fired Asnæs plant, and uses the waste heat from the power plant to reduce operating costs.

The basic feedstock for the plant is straw, and the plant will use about 30,000 tons of straw each year. In addition to the bio-ethanol produced, the plant will also produce 13,500 tons of biopellets, which are returned to the power plant to produce more power, as well as 10,000 tons of feed molasses. Inbicon has developed a proprietary pretreatment process for the first-stage hydrolysis unit, during which enzymes are introduced to capture sugars from the lignin and cellulose in the straw. The enzymes are aimed at reducing the energy requirements of the overall process.

The initial stage of the process involves the use of steam from the adjacent power plant to cook the straw at 180 degrees Celsius for about 10 minutes. Water is added to the mass, which is then pressed to remove the liquid that later becomes molasses. The pressed solid is sent to holding tanks and is stored at 55 degrees Celsius for six hours. At this stage, the enzymes are added.

In subsequent processing, yeast is added to ferment the mass into ethanol. After a final distillation process, the solid remainder is lignin, which is converted to pellets that are returned to the power plant and burned to produce more energy.

The enzymes used at the Inbicon plant are supplied by Novozymes A/S (CPH:NZYM B) (Bagsværd, Denmark) and Danisco A/S (CPH:DCO) (Copenhagen). In particular, the process uses the Danisco Accellerase 1500 enzyme, a second-generation enzyme developed specifically for biofuel production.

Under the current technology at the plant, only C6 glucose sugars are converted into ethanol, but Inbicon is continuing to develop the technology at the demonstration plant with a view to converting molasses (containing C5 xylose sugars) into ethanol, should it become economically viable. Inbicon is also reportedly experimenting with other feedstocks in addition to straw, such as bagasse, sorghum, palm oil residue and corn stover (the leaves and stalks of maize).

The first year's output has already been sold to StatoilHydro ASA (NYSE:STO) (Stavanger, Norway), which intends to mix the ethanol into the Danish fuel supply next year. However, some of the ethanol produced by the plant will be used to supply E-85 fuel for a number of official vehicles used in conjunction with the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP-15) at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to be held in Copenhagen in early December.

Inbicon has plans to develop further plants and to licence out the technology. In addition, Inbicon sees potential in retrofitting the technology to current corn-based plants. Representatives from U.S.-based Great River Energy (Maple Grove, Minnesota) attended the official opening of the Inbicon plant, announcing that Great River hoped to either licence the technology or work in conjunction with Inbicon to develop a similar plant in Spiritwood, North Dakota, using heat from the existing Spiritwood combined heat and power plant to reduce operating costs.

For related item, see September 1, 2009, article - Denmark to Increase Growth of Willows for Biofuel Production.

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