Authorities in the Province of Groningen have granted an irrevocable permit guaranteeing the operations of DBG in Delfzijl, Groningen, the Netherlands.
DBG Group BV is very pleased to announce that it has secured the building-, environmental- and operational permits for its plant to be built in Delfzijl. The permits, granted by The Province of Groningen and the Waterboard Hunze & Aa’s, allows DBG to start the process of producing green energy products.
Paper sludge, the waste stream of paper mills, will be the feedstock for the plant operation in Delfzijl. The process will result in large volumes of biogas, consisting of green methane as well as biogenic CO2 and bio fertilizer. Currently paper sludge is primarily incinerated by paper mills; instead, DBG will upcycle this waste stream into usable green products.
The DBG plant at the industrial park Oosterhorn, Delfzijl, The Netherlands
Every year, around 290.000 tons of paper sludge will be transported by barge to the location in Delfzijl and the end products will also leave the plant primarily by barge. On an annual basis the plant will produce 250GWh of green energy. In a unique and proprietary way, DBG mixes paper sludge with enzymes in order to process the treated paper sludge in anaerobic digesters. This unlocks the biogas potential and furthers the production of other renewable products. Produced from a pre-existing waste stream, our products replace the need to use fossil fuel-based feed stocks.
The biogas can serve the community by providing energy to households and transportation companies (trucks and barges). The biogenic CO2 can be utilized in the food- and aviation industries. Lastly, the green fertilizer can replace artificial fertilizer and serve the agriculture sector.
This way, DBG is committed to creating a system change in the way waste is managed and reused so as to achieve zero waste and speed up the energy transition.
The irrevocable permit has been the result of close cooperation with the Province of Groningen, the Omgevingsdienst Groningen, the Waterboard Hunze & Aa’s, Groningen Seaports NV, the municipality Eemsdelta, the nearby villages and other stakeholders.
Berkay Güres, Managing Director of DBG Group BV, expressed his enthusiasm as follows: “I am very proud that this Dutch initiative has received the permission of the authorities. It expresses a vast amount of trust in our endeavours to produce green products from paper sludge. It is a major step on the path to reduce CO2 emissions and contribute towards an additional source of energy which is fully circular and sustainable. Delfzijl is our first plant but certainly not our last. At this moment in time, we are developing two more plants in the Netherlands and a number of others in various European countries. A big thank you to all involved in making this breakthrough in the Province of Groningen happen. Thank you for your support and expressing your confidence.”
