Denmark: Become energy independent – with crap

Denmark’s energy grid has the world’s largest share of biogas. Thanks to its cows and pigs of all things, the country could soon be climate-neutral and independent of gas imports.

Peter Høj’s cows on the Danish island of Funen chew and digest – also for Denmark’s energy transition. His grandfather set up the dairy here in the 1930s. Today, grandson Peter not only makes money from the cows’ milk, but also from what comes out the back: he sells liquid manure to a biogas plant. “The cooperation with the biogas plant started about five to seven years ago,” says the farmer. “The initiative came from the farmers here in the region and from the municipality. We got together. With the result that many farmers wanted to participate in a joint system.”

At the time it was clear: it was worth it, because the Danish government had already decided in 2012 to subsidize the production of biogas. And so a large tanker truck comes by Høj once a week. 38,000 liters of manure are sucked into the tank in just a few minutes. The farmer earns 6,000 euros a year. If the gas price rises, he gets a surcharge again. And that even though he actually only lends his valuable manure: “You can say that the biogas plant is an intermediate station between my barn and my manure store,” explains Høj. “Because I’ll get them back in my tank later.”

Climate neutrality by 2050

But first, the truck drives its load into a biogas plant: liquid manure, manure, and also food leftovers are processed in tanks that are as tall as a building. Gases are formed from the sludge – especially methane. This is fed into the Danish gas network directly on site by the operators through their own line, explains Lars Kapersen from the operator Nature Energy: “We produce green gas on a large scale. With a plant like this we can supply 20,000 households, just with the energy that we get from waste. So you have to think big. Then you could also do it in Germany.”

Biogas already accounts for 40 percent of the total market. In ten years it should cover the entire gas requirement. This goal is part of the ambitious Danish climate plan: By 2050, the country wants to be climate-neutral and completely do without fossil fuels. The gas is already being used to generate electricity or for heating.

“Necessary that we do something”

For example in Odense, Denmark’s third largest city. At the southern Danish university, energy experts like Henrik Wenzel are optimistic that the energy transition can succeed. “In Denmark we rely on solar and a lot on wind power,” he says. “But how do we generate electricity when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing? The answer: gas turbines that run on biogas. They’re cheap and can be switched on and off quickly.”

The tanker has now returned to Peter Høj’s farm. This time he brings back the fermented manure from the biogas plant, which the farmer can now use to fertilize in a climate-neutral manner. Because after the process in the plant, the liquid manure no longer contains any carbon dioxide.

The biogas cycle has many advantages for Bauer Høj. “In the future, our products will be measured by the impact they have on the climate,” he says. “So it is necessary that we do something – not only for our conscience towards nature, but also to sell products in the future.” No country produces more biogas than Denmark, says Høj with a certain pride. So other countries could still learn a lot from Denmark.

You can see this and other reports on Sunday, November 13th, 2022 at 12.45 p.m. in the “Europamagazin”.