New Biogas Plant in Puglia Fed with the Prickly Pear Plant

(News Italy 24) Sebigas, a company specializing in the design and construction of biogas and biomethane plants, signs a contract with Wakonda SpA, an innovative agricultural startup from Lecce, for the construction of a biogas plant powered by Opuntia (prickly pear) blades and others agricultural by-products, for the production of electricity and heat, and high quality organic fertilizer.

The Wakonda project was started on land previously affected by the Xylella plague and no longer cultivated by the previous owners. They are lands unsuitable for noble cultivations which, like many others in Puglia and in the south in general, run the risk of remaining uncultivated and abandoned.

The biogas plant will be fed with the cladodes – the blades of the prickly pear cactus -, olive pomace, pomace, whey and poultry manure, for an annual total of about 16,000 tons. Sebigas will follow the customer in the role of Technology Provider, dealing with the design and construction of technological systems.

The plant will have an installed power of 300 kW: the electricity produced will be transferred to the grid, the heat will be fully utilized in the Wakonda production cycles while the digestate, rich in nutrients, will be used as a fertilizer for the surrounding land. Once operational, the new Wakonda facility will save more than 11,000 metric tons of CO2 each year.

According to Andrea Ortenzi, CEO and Founder of Wakonda, “Our prickly pear cultivation and processing technique aims to be an “open model” of development, also from a landscape and environmental point of view, which will make it possible to recover much of the land left unproductive following the Xylella plague. Model open to the cultivation of Opuntia also by other local farmers, with whom we want to relate to offer an opportunity for growth and work.

We trust that this with Sebigas is the first of a series of projects that are possible also thanks to the important legislative innovations who seek to combine agricultural efficiency and the production of Renewable Energy, in particular with the so-called Biomethane decree; we hope to be able to implement “agricultural” biomethane projects in the next few years, also thanks to a proactive dialogue with local administrations, who are very sensitive to these issues”.

According to Alessandro Vox, CFO of Wakonda, “The biodigester project, in collaboration with Sebigasthe first in Europe fed mainly with the prickly pear plant, allows us to create various products for human consumption and animal feed, which will be placed on the market in 2024. The process, in a complete circular economy, reducing the energy costs of transformation of the plant, will allow us to have more competitive prices for customers.”

“The heart of the biorefinery is the biogas plant, which allows us to achieve full circularity: in addition to generating energy, total heat recovery is integrated into our production cycles, with an innovative approach that minimizes production costs. We are very satisfied with the solutions proposed by Sebigas for our project”, says the CTO of Wakonda, Dr. Fabrizio Sibilla.

The cultivation of opuntia has many advantages: it is a plant that can be worked and cultivated even in arid lands, just think that compared to corn, 10 times less quantities of water are needed, for a quadruple production. It is a very simple cultivation process, in the case of Wakonda also in an organic regime but above all much more sustainable than classic crops. Opuntia also grows perfectly under solar panels, so agri-voltaics can also be implemented on these lands. Finally, it is possible to exploit not only the delicious fruit for food consumption but also its blades to feed biogas plants and produce new energy (energy potential of 50-80 m3 of raw biogas for each ton of cladodes as such depending on their content of water).

About Sebigas Renewable Energy srl

Sebigas is an engineering company active since 2008 and specialized in the design, supply and management of biogas and biomethane plants all over the world. With a portfolio of over 80 plants built on 3 continents, and with installed power ranging from 200 kW to 3 MW, Sebigas plants record 98.2% availability at maximum power, equivalent to around 8,600 hours of operation per year with limited plant shutdowns at a minimum. Sebigas is a reliable partner with consolidated experience in the treatment of heterogeneous biomass, capable of supplying tailor-made plants, designed on the customer’s needs to guarantee optimal and continuous operating efficiency. From its headquarters in Italy, Sebigas operates all over the world supported and supported by belonging since 2020 to the international group TICA, with approximately 3000 employees, 10 production plants worldwide and 70 branch offices.

About Wakonda SpA is an innovative startup in agriculture in the Lecce area and oriented towards sustainability, established in 2021 and made up of a team of experts in bioenergy, food industries, nutraceuticals, retail and marketing. The first company that deals not only with the cultivation of Opuntia but also with its transformation for multiple uses, such as food production for obtaining flour or proteins, drinks and juices, or for the production of cosmetics and nutraceutical products. READ MORE