Official inauguration in the presence of Professor Armin Willingmann, Minister for Science, Energy, Climate Protection and Environment of Saxony-Anhalt, Markus Bauer, head of the Salzland district authority, and Dr. Silvia Ristow, Mayor of Bernburg (Saale)

The energy company MVV has officially opened its anaerobic digestion plant in Bernburg (Saale) which will produce energy from biowaste.
Together with Professor Armin Willingmann, Minister for Science, Energy, Climate Protection and Environment of Saxony-Anhalt, Markus Bauer, head of the Salzland district authority, and Dr. Silvia Ristow, Mayor of Bernburg (Saale), Dr. Hansjörg Roll, member of the Executive Board of MVV Energie AG, symbolically opened the pipeline that will be used to supply environmentally friendly biomethane to the region.

"Converting waste into biomethane allows us to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and, at the same time, increase the security of our energy supplies. It is a solution that can help us to overcome two of the biggest challenges of our age: climate change and the energy crisis that has resulted from Russia's war against Ukraine. I am pleased that in MVV we have a strong energy partner here in Saxony-Anhalt that will help us to develop forward-looking technologies for climate-friendly energy generation," said Professor Armin Willingmann, Minister for Science, Energy, Climate Protection and Environment of Saxony-Anhalt, at the inauguration ceremony.

In his speech, Markus Bauer, head of the Salzland district authority, referred to the contribution that the anaerobic digestion plant will make to the implementation of the 2030 future strategy of the Salzland district: "We have set ourselves the goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2030. The anaerobic digestion of biowaste plays an important role in this process, because, in contrast to composting, it considerably reduces CO2 emissions by producing additional energy." Markus Bauer highlighted the plant's location in Bernburg: "We are keeping transport to a minimum, which will also help us to cut costs." The amount of traffic on the roads will also be reduced. Markus Bauer thanked MVV for its commitment to the region: "The Salzland district will benefit from this as a place to live and work and a location for research."

Dr. Silvia Ristow, Mayor of Bernburg (Saale), was also convinced of the benefits of environmentally friendly energy generation in the local area: "This plant is a prime example of how to generate green energy from the region for the region and of how to create a sustainable circular economy. It means that as a town we are making our own local contribution to the energy transition."

"The climate-friendly anaerobic digestion of biowaste enables Bernburg not only to make an important contribution to a regional and sustainable circular economy, but also to play a pioneering role in the energy transition. The process involves using natural resources to generate renewable energy which will also benefit local residents," said Dr. Hansjörg Roll, member of the Executive Board of MVV, at the inauguration ceremony and added: "The biogas plant in Bernburg once again demonstrates our close ties with the region where we have been committed to environmentally friendly, sustainable energy generation since 2005."

Climate-neutral energy source reduces dependence on natural gas
By processing the biogas produced by the anaerobic digestion of biowaste, the plant will be able to generate around 21,000 megawatt hours of biomethane per year. Biomethane is a renewable energy source and is therefore a complete, climate-neutral replacement for natural gas. Unlike traditional biowaste composting without energy generation, the biowaste anaerobic digestion plant in Bernburg will save around 7,400 metric tons of CO2 emissions. This corresponds to converting 2,200 households to green electricity and around 300 households to green heating. The biogas plant in Bernburg will therefore play a key role in reducing the region's dependence on fossil gas supplies and protecting the climate.

Major contribution to a sustainable circular economy
Another factor that demonstrates the importance of the forward-looking combination of anaerobic digestion and biogas production is the fact that the ultra-modern plant can process around 33,000 metric tons of biowaste each year. In addition to biogas, the anaerobic digestion process also produces residues that can be converted into valuable solid or liquid products for use in the agricultural industry.

As a result, MVV is making a significant contribution to the creation of a sustainable circular economy and saving our planet's resources, which are in increasingly short supply. Alongside the plant's benefits for the environment, it also provides a safe means of disposing of waste and a secure energy supply and increases the added value in the region.

Bacteria produce clean energy
Everything that goes in the biowaste bin, from potato peelings and garden waste to coffee filters, can generate green energy at the plant in Bernburg and the residues of the anaerobic digestion process can be used in agriculture. This is how anaerobic digestion works.

Bacteria break down the organic waste in an anaerobic environment without any gas escaping into the atmosphere. In addition, all the plant's tanks are odor-proof. A high-performance extraction process keeps the waste arrival area and all the air in the buildings clean. The waste is kept moving by agitators inside the anaerobic digestion tanks. This allows the biogas to escape upward, while all the waste air is purified in a modern biofilter system.

The raw biogas produced by the anaerobic digestion process is then converted into biomethane of the same quality as natural gas. The biomethane is fed into the natural gas network and this is how it reaches consumers. It can be used in a combined heat and power plant to generate electricity and heating or as a fuel (for example at CNG filling stations for trucks and garbage collection vehicles or in the local public transport system). In addition, it is suitable for use as a green gas in industrial production processes.

The other outputs from the anaerobic digestion of biowaste are liquid and solid residues which are used in the agriculture and horticulture industries.

The groundbreaking ceremony in Bernburg took place at the end of 2020
Funding for the construction of the new low-emission anaerobic digestion plant in Bernburg was granted by the Federal Ministry for the Environment as part of the National Climate Initiative. At the end of 2017, the project, which involved an investment of around 20 million euros, was presented to the public for the first time. The groundbreaking ceremony, when construction of the plant began on the four-hectare site in the Bernburg Industrial Park West, took place at the end of 2020. The plant has been in operation since early 2022 using biowaste from the Salzland district and is feeding biomethane into the natural gas network of Stadtwerke Bernburg, the local utility company.

MVV's comprehensive commitment to the region
Since 2005, MVV has had several plants in operation in Saxony-Anhalt which produce sustainable, climate-friendly energy. It operates four biomethane plants in the Magdeburg Börde district and five wind farms, plus a thermal waste treatment plant in Leuna that supplies climate-friendly district heating for Merseburg. MVV has also been the parent company of Köthen Energie since 2000.

Source: MVV Energy Group