Weltec Biopower Modernizes Biogas Plant in Australia
German plant manufacturer Weltec Biopower supported Australian company Yarra Valley Water in refurbishing its one-megawatt biogas plant in the north of Melbourne.
Yarra Valley Water is one of Australia’s largest water and wastewater companies. Since the completion of the waste and food waste plant by the German firm and its project partner in 2017, Yarra Valley Water’s Aurora Treatment Plant has been energy self-sufficient. To operate the plant profitably into the future, it has been undergoing a technical modernization, including biological service planned for August 2024. The work of the local team was supported by Weltec Biopower on-site.
At the start of the maintenance work, the tanks were completely emptied, the German manufacturer described the procedure. In addition, the roofs of the two 3,573 cubic meter stainless steel fermenters and internal plant components such as the agitator technology have been replaced. Then the plant was commissioned, and operational management was secured. The digester contents have been temporarily stored in the storage tank for the material to be filled back into the tanks after the refurbishment. In this way, the plant could be up and running quickly. As underlined, this saves resources and costs. In addition, it is easier to restart the biological process when the fermented material is immediately available. Finally, yet importantly, “the processes also comply with occupational safety requirements, which are a high priority in Australia – especially when emptying and filling the tanks”, Weltec Biopower gave account.
The plant and its capacity
The plant’s output, which has two 530-kilowatt combined heat and power (CHP) units, covers the energy requirements of the biogas plant. “The electricity generated is able to power both the facility itself and the sewage treatment plant, with excess energy is exported to the electricity grid. The plant has a processing capacity of 33,000 tons of organic waste from food processors and restaurants to generate around 7,500,000 kilowatt hours of energy per year”, the information said. “Accepted waste includes fats, oils, brewery and dairy residues, fruit and vegetables, which are fed into the stainless-steel containers.”
As underlined, Yarra Valley Water’s facility has already won prestigious awards for its technology, including the Premier’s Sustainability Award for leading innovation and practice in Victoria and the Banksia Award for Leading in Circular Economy.
weltec-biopower.com
yvw.com.au
(Published in GLOBAL RECYCLING Magazine 3/2024, Page 13, Photo: Weltec Biopower)
