Bioenergie Frauenfeld AG has officially opened one of the largest wood-fired power plants in Europe in Frauenfeld. The company was founded by Energie 360° and Schweizer Zucker AG to implement this project. The plant’s four gas engines generate electricity for around 8,000 households and heat for the sugar factory and the Thurplus heating network from wood waste that would otherwise go unused. Its technology comes from the Tyrolean company Syncraft .
“The wood-fired power plant is a perfect example of how renewable energy is produced and used in a decentralized manner,” said Romeo Deplazes from Energie 360° in a press release from the Agricultural Information Service . “It’s the kind of project that is needed for the energy transition.”
In addition, Bioenergie Frauenfeld also uses the renewable raw material to produce biochar. Part of the CO2 stored in the wood is not released and is permanently removed from the atmosphere in the form of biochar. It is used, for example, in agriculture to improve the soil, as a feed additive or as activated carbon in water treatment.
The ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of the wood-fired power plant took place in February 2021. “What we have achieved in Frauenfeld in one year is unbelievable,” says project manager Stefan Ellenbroek. “Thanks to the excellent cooperation of all partners, we were able to keep to the very ambitious schedule and realize the light tower project.”
