Natural gas pipeline in Germany holds “green” methane; Austria has similar plans

Enlarge / German economy minister and Vice Chancellor Philipp Roesler (FDP, R) and company manager Renee Schoof officially employ the hydrogen facility "Power-to-Gas," turning excess wind energy into hydrogen for storage in Falkenhagen, Germany, 28 August 2013. (credit: Nestor Bachmann/picture alliance via Getty Images)

A Di1/4sseldorf, Germany-based energy company called Uniper announced last week that it sent methane made from renewable hydrogen into the local natural gas pipeline.

The methanation plant in Falkenhagen that made the synthetic methane opened in May 2018 (PDF), and the plant's operators began testing the process to combine renewable hydrogen with carbon dioxide from a nearby bioethanol plant.

The synthetic methane is sent into the local natural gas pipeline, where it's used along with traditional natural gas. "Today, the plant produces up to 1,400 cubic meters of synthetic methane (SNG) per day, which corresponds to approximately 14,500 kWh [kilowatt hours] of energy," a Uniper press release noted.

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