WAGA ENERGY
Activities
Landfill gas upgrading into grid compliant Renewable Natural Gas
Waga-Energy upgrades landfill gas into grid-compliant biomethane (also called Renewable Natural Gas or RNG). Thanks to the WAGABOX® technology, which combines membrane filtration and cryogenic distillation, Waga Energy recovers the methane produced spontaneously by the breakdown of organic matter contained in the waste to inject it directly into the gas grid.
Most of waste ends up in landfills. Once landfilled, the organic materials they contain degrade and produce a gas containing a high proportion of methane, mixed with carbon dioxide, air (oxygen and nitrogen) and various pollutants. This biogas is very difficult to valorize because of the presence of air and its highly variable and unpredictable nature.
The result of ten years of R&D, the WAGABOX® technology combines membrane filtration and cryogenic distillation to separate the methane from the other components of the landfill gas. It provides high-quality biomethane that is injected directly into the gas grid. WAGABOX® units are fully automated purification units: they operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and are remotely controlled by a supervision device.
Waga Energy deploys this solution worldwide through a dedicated business model: Waga Energy purchases landfill gas from landfill site operators, finances the construction of the WAGABOX® units and their connection to the gas network, and generates income by selling biomethane to energy utilities.
The first WAGABOX® unit was commissioned in France in February 2017 thanks to a grant from Ademe as part of the French government’s economic stimulus program PIA. Four years later, ten WAGABOX® units are in operation in France. They supply 35,000 households and avoid the emission of 45,000 tons of CO2eq per year into the atmosphere by substituting biomethane for fossil natural gas.
Key figures
- Staff
- 55
- Turnover
- 11000
References
WAGABOX® unit of Saint-Florentin landfill (France)
Commissioning: 14th Feb. 2017
Landfill operator: Coved-Paprec
- 70 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas: 40-50 % CH4 | 0-3 % O2 | 1 500 ppmv H2S | 5-25 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 3 kilometers
- Capacity: 25 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Saint-Maximin landfill (France)
Commissioning: 26th June, 2017
Landfill operator: Suez
- 200 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas: 45-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 7 000 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 1.2 kilometer
- Capacity: 25 GWh/an
WAGABOX® unit of Pavie landfill (France)
Commissioning: 30th May, 2018
Landfill operator: Trigone
- 40 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas: 40-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 500 ppmv H2S | 5-25 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 3 kilometers
- Capacity: 15 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Saint-Palais lanfill (France)
Commissioning: 6th November 2018
Landfill operator: Veolia
- 90 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas :40-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 1 000 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 1.6 kilometer
- Capacity: 20 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Gueltas landfill (France)
Commissioning: 13th November 2018
Landfill operator: Suez
- 200 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas :45-50 % CH4 | 0-5 % O2 | 1 000 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 6 kilometers
- Capacity: 25 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Chevilly landfill (France)
Commissioning: 20th December 2018
Landfill operator: Suez
- 60 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas :40-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 4 000 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 6 kilometers
- Capacity: 15 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Kermat landfill (France)
Commissioning: 26th November 2019
Landfill operator: Lorient-Agglomération
- 60 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas: 45-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 4 000 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 6 kilometers
- Capacity: 15 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Les Ventes-de-Bourse landfill (France)
Commissioning: 15th January 2020
Landfill operator: Suez
- 120 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas: 45-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 4 000 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 14 kilometers
- Capacity: 25 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Liéoux landfill (France)
Commissioning: 16th January 2020
Landfill operator: Sivom SGMAM
- 85 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas: 45-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 4 000 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 7 kilometers
- Capacity: 35 GWh/year
WAGABOX® unit of Blaringhem landfill (France)
Commissioning: 2nd September 2020
Landfill operator: Baudelet Environnement
- 600 000 tons of waste per year
- Biogas: 40-50% CH4 | 0-3% O2 | 300 ppmv H2S | 5-20 % N2
- Distance of the gas grid: 0,7 kilometers
- Capacity: 25 GWh/year
Under construction
WAGABOX® unit of Le Ham (Veolia)
WAGABOX® uni of Gournay (SG Gournay)
WAGABOX® unit of Claye-Souilly (Veolia)
WAGABOX® unit of Can Mata, Spain (Ferrovial Servicios)
Intervention domains
Biogas - Combating greenhouse gases technology - Controlled landfill - Combating greenhouse gases - Energy extraction from waste - Regulations - Audit - Consultancy - Studies and EngineeringCertifications, labels or price
AWARDS
- An innovation grant under the French government’s economic stimulus program PIA (Programme d’Investissements d’Avenir)
- First Prize in the 2016 Fighting Climate Change Awards (French energy agency ADEME and the French Ministry of the Ecology, Sustainable Development, and Energy).
- Pollutec 2016 Innovation Awards
- 2016 Start-up of the Year for the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region (EY/L’Express)
- Runner-up in the European Business Awards for the Environment (EBAE) 2018
- WAGABOX® is one the 1000 Solutions to protect the environment certified by the Solar Impulse Foundation.
Video
- From landfill gas to grid-compliant biomethane
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Measuring biogas/landfill gas composition from the inlet to the outlet