Biogas Upgrading

When it comes to the global energy transition, many people still associate biogas with “small ponds for rural household use.” Today, however, biogas is no longer merely a “byproduct of smallholder agriculture”; it is evolving into a low-carbon energy source that is becoming industrialized, cleaner, and commercialized.

In particular, once biogas is upgraded to biomethane, it is fully capable of replacing natural gas; it can be fed into urban gas networks or used directly as CNG (compressed natural gas) for vehicles. This has elevated biogas from a “waste treatment” solution to an integral part of the energy industry.

I. Technical Mechanism

Anaerobic digestion: Organic matter (feces, crop straw, food waste) decomposes under anaerobic conditions to produce a mixture of gases.

Main components: methane (CH₄, 50–70%), carbon dioxide (CO₂, 30–50%), along with small amounts of H₂S and water vapor.

Upgrading and Purification: Removal of CO₂, H₂S, and H₂O → Methane concentration ≥ 95% → Biomethane.

Biomethane has properties nearly identical to those of fossil natural gas and can serve as a direct substitute.

II. Application Scenarios

Grid-Connected Gas Supply

Upgraded bio-methane can be fed into existing natural gas pipeline networks.

A “green natural gas” market has already taken shape in Europe, where users can purchase certified credits.

Transportation Fuel

Bio-CNG (Compressed Bio-Methane): Used in buses, taxis, and logistics vehicles.

Bio-LNG (Liquefied Biomethane): Suitable for long-haul heavy-duty trucks and ships.

Distributed Power Generation and Heating

Direct use of biogas for power generation or heating, suitable for farms, industrial parks, and remote areas.

Agriculture and Environmental Protection

Manure → Biogas + Digestate (which can be used as fertilizer), achieving the recycling of agricultural waste.

III. International Case Studies

Germany’s “Biogas Villages”: Thousands of small villages use manure and crop straw for fermentation to generate energy, with all resident heating and electricity supplied by biogas.

Sweden’s Bio-CNG Buses: More than half of the country’s buses run on biomethane, resulting in significant emissions reductions.

China’s Demonstration Projects:

Regions such as Shandong and Sichuan are promoting the resource utilization of livestock manure.

Guangdong and Shanghai have already exported Bio-CNG to the European market.

IV. Challenges and Bottlenecks

Scattered Resources: Collection radii are too large, resulting in high transportation costs.

Upgrade Costs: The processes of CO₂ purification, desulfurization, and dehydration require energy consumption and investment.

Economic Dependency: Without a carbon price or subsidies, Bio-methane lacks competitiveness compared to cheap natural gas.

Policies and Standards: Standards for pipeline network connections and fuel certification systems still need to be refined.

V. Future Outlook

Policy Driven: The EU plans to reach a biomethane production capacity of 35 billion cubic meters by 2030, making it a key component of natural gas substitution.

Carbon Market Value: Biomethane achieves life-cycle emissions reductions of 80–90%, giving it high value in the carbon trading market.

Technology Trends: Small-scale, skid-mounted purification units are emerging, driving the rapid deployment of Bio-CNG on farms and in small and medium-sized cities.

VI. IPS Energy’s Perspective

In our view, the strategic value of biogas and biomethane is primarily reflected in three aspects:

From “Waste Treatment” to “Energy Product”

In the past, the core value of biogas lay in environmental protection; today, it serves as a green alternative to natural gas and possesses commodity attributes.

Distributed and Skid-Mounted Systems

Eps Energy believes that the future direction lies in 20-foot or 40-foot containerized biogas upgrading units, enabling on-site fermentation, on-site purification, and on-site utilization at farms and industrial parks.

Integration with Hydrogen and CCUS

CO₂ captured during the upgrading process can be combined with green hydrogen to synthesize methanol or methane, forming a Bio-CO₂ + H₂ → e-fuels value chain.

Biogas is not merely a fuel; it is also a key component of a carbon resource utilization platform.

Conclusion

The story of biogas and biomethane is evolving from “small rural ponds” to the “international energy market.”

It serves as both a tool for agricultural emissions reduction and the circular economy, as well as a bridge for natural gas decarbonization and transportation emissions reduction.

In the future, driven by policies and the carbon market, biomethane will become one of the most down-to-earth green energy sources.

For Eips, this signifies that there are enormous systemic opportunities at the intersection of agriculture, energy, and the carbon market.