Advancing agriculture in a sustainable way and respecting the environment, that is the vision of Timac Agro (Groupe Roullier). With this in mind, the fertiliser manufacturer chose to tackle the energy consumption of its Charleroi factory in a more efficient and sustainable way. The result is a brand-new CHP installation that provides the production process with local heat and electricity.
Fertiliser producer Timac Agro BeLux is part of Groupe Roullier, a leading international group active in the agri-food industry for more than 60 years.
Supported by its vision of sustainability, in 2016 the company joined the ‘accords de branche’, agreements between government and industry in Wallonia to improve the energy efficiency of production sites and reduce CO2 emissions from industrial processes.
This was followed in 2018 by a partnership with Luminus Solutions.. Timac Agro’s objective: to generate the energy needed to run the factory in a sustainable and efficient way through cogeneration.
A tailor-made solution for better profitability
Luminus Solutions supported Timac Agro from the very beginning, with an analysis of the company’s needs and the feasibility of the project, and the start-up of all the administrative steps involved in building such an installation. This is necessary at an early stage in order to get all the permits in order, apply for certificates and get the approval of the grid operator.
As always, Luminus Solutions’ approach was tailor-made for the client. In the first phase, all options were studied and weighed in order to arrive at the optimal solution which best met Timac Agro’s needs and yielded the highest return.
The result was recently put into operation: an efficient decentralised energy production in the form of a 1200 kWe cogeneration fully integrated into the fertiliser production process. For example, the flue gases are injected directly into the drying process and the hot water from the CHP is used to preheat the burner and dilution air flows. The electricity produced is used entirely on site.
The CHP – with acoustic enclosure to limit noise levels – was installed in a new building next to the existing wood-fired boiler house, which remains in use.
Ten years of energy and CO2 savings
Project Manager Dieter Backx: “By producing a large part of its energy itself, Timac Agro can achieve an expected CO2 saving of 30%, or in other words a reduction of its CO2 emissions by around 900 tonnes a year. Moreover, thanks to the high yield, the investment will pay for itself in less than 3 years.”
Luminus Solutions will also be responsible for maintaining the installation. In this way energy savings will be guaranteed and Timac Agro will be able to enjoy efficient and sustainable energy production for the next 10 years.
