Project to convert manure to energy wins Austrian award

AMMAN — A recycling system that converts animal manure into energy and heat sources has been awarded the 2016 Energy Global National Award for the best environmental project in Jordan. 

Developed by the National Energy Research Centre (NERC) of the Royal Scientific Society, the project on a farm in Irbid uses cow manure to produce biogas through anaerobic digestion. 

The digester mixes manure with warm water, which is heated by a thermal system, to generate biogas and fertiliser, according to the website for the awards, which are granted by the Austrian Energy Globe Foundation

Some of the biogas is used to generate electricity, and the rest is used as thermal energy for the stove. 

Suhaib Ababneh, studies specialist at NERC’s Oil Shale and Bio-Energy Division, said the project seeks to treat animal waste in farms and to develop a new source of energy for livestock breeders.

Ababneh highlighted future plans to replicate the system, in partnership with the concerned ministries, so that other livestock breeders can transform waste into sources for electricity and heat. 

He told The Jordan Times at a ceremony held on Tuesday that the overall cost of the project is around JD6,000, noting that the project has a lifespan of 25 years.

The Energy Globe National Award honours projects that conserve resources, including energy, or utilise renewable or emission-free sources, according to the Advantage Austria, the country’s trade promotion organisation, which is a partner of the Austrian Energy Globe Foundation in the national awards.

Boris Resetarits, commercial attaché at the Austrian embassy in Amman, said the winning project reduced methane gas emissions, decreased electricity bills by 50 per cent and used processed manure as fertiliser.

“This project is very inspiring…. It saves resources and it can be replicated in many parts of the country,” he noted.

Resetarits added that over 1,700 projects from 177 countries were submitted to the foundation this year to compete for the international award.  

The competition has been expanded to include projects that enhance the quality of air, soil and water as well as projects that improve energy efficiency or develop renewable energy systems, the official said. 

Commenting on the award, Jordan Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Fund Director Rasmi Hamzeh said such success stories show the progress made in the clean and sustainable energy sector in Jordan over the past few years.

The EU’s energy, environment and climate change programme manager, Omar Abu Eid, expressed the EU’s keenness to continue working with local partners to develop the sector’s potential.

He noted that investments and projects in the renewable energy sector do not have to be large-scale, adding that small projects could be efficient.