Nippon Gases, a company specialising in the manufacture, treatment and purification of industrial and medical gases, has reached a strategic agreement with alternative asset manager Suma Capital focused on sustainable infrastructures for the development of biogas upgrading projects, and involving its transformation to biomethane.

The alliance has materialised in the creation of the joint venture Soluciones Totales de Biometano (STB), which already has two projects underway in Spain and a combined production capacity of 52 gigawatt hours of biomethane per year in the first phase, and up to 82 gigawatt hours in the second phase. In addition to this development they also plan to continue exploring new projects.

Know-how and experience
Nippon Gases, the European subsidiary of Japan's Nippon Sanso Holdings Corporation, will provide the new company with its expertise in gas treatment and purification technologies and its experience in the operation and maintenance of gas production plants. Suma Capital, on the other hand, will bring its expertise as a financial investor in the development and construction of biogas and biomethane plants in Spain.

The first project to be developed by STB will be the first upgrading and liquefaction plant in Spain to produce liquefied biomethane (BioGNL) for use as a clean fuel for land transport. Located in Aragon, it has guaranteed the sale of its production through a long-term agreement with Naturgy. Nippon Gases will be responsible for the construction and operation of the plant.

Ten million-euro investment
The second project, which is to be located in Cuenca, and is one of the few in Spain to inject biomethane directly into the Enagás transport network, is also new. STB is set to invest around ten million euros in these two projects, which are expected to come into operation in the second half of 2024.

The biogas supplier for both plants will be the Gestcompost group, a company owned by Suma Capital through its sustainable infrastructure fund. The production of biogas will reduce the volume of organic waste that ends up in landfills and prevent the emission of methane into the atmosphere. It will be subsequently purified to convert it into biomethane, with the same quality as natural gas, something which will allow it to be used as a clean fuel.

A more sustainable energy model
Nippon Gases España’s marketing and business development director, José Vicente Sánchez Navarro, said, “This strategic agreement with Suma Capital demonstrates Nippon Gases’ commitment to the transition to a more sustainable energy model. Thanks to this alliance, we will be able to apply our expertise in gas treatment and purification technologies to develop biomethane projects in Spain and contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.”

Pablo de Muller, founding partner of Suma Capital, explained, “This agreement with Nippon Gases allows us to expand our capacity to develop sustainable infrastructure projects in Spain and Europe. We believe that investment in biogas and biomethane has a huge potential when it comes to contributing to the energy transition and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”

^{Photo: Nippon Gases}