TripleW to Produce Biochemicals from Food Waste in Port of Antwerp: Green Innovation Projects Underway

The company TripleW will make biochemicals from food waste in the port of Antwerp. — © rr

Two companies will test new processes at the old Opel site in the port of Antwerp that should make the industry a lot more environmentally friendly. One process makes green hydrogen up to 65 percent cheaper, the other makes biochemicals from food waste.

In 2010, the Opel car factory in the port of Antwerp closed its doors permanently. Today, that site has been transformed into the NextGen District. There are companies involved in greening the industry. For example, the American company Plug In is investing 300 million euros to produce green hydrogen in the NextGen District. Chemical companies, for example, can then make molecules based on green hydrogen, instead of oil, and therefore emit less CO2. Ekopak will commit itself to circular water use at the old Opel site and Bolder Industries, PureCycle and Triple Helix will recycle all kinds of things.

Two new projects

The NextGen District covers an area of ​​88 hectares. Two hectares of this will be cleared for demonstrations. These are pilot projects that have outgrown the laboratory phase and are now moving to a higher level. The first two pilot projects have now been selected and will start in the fourth quarter of this year.

“We chose the port of Antwerp for this project because the port already has a large local market for hydrogen and will become a major hub for hydrogen in the future”

Paul Matter

CEO Power to Hydrogen

The first project comes from the American company Power to Hydrogen. That company wants to accelerate the transition to green hydrogen through so-called ‘anion exchange membrane’ (AEM) electrolysis. “Our technology can reduce the cost of hydrogen by 65 percent, compared to existing technologies,” said Paul Matter, CEO of Power to Hydrogen. “We can therefore reduce the costs of hydrogen to below 2 euros per kilogram. We chose the port of Antwerp for this project because the port already has a large local market for hydrogen and will become a major hub for hydrogen in the future.”

The second project comes from the Israeli company TripleW, which has developed an industrial process to produce lactic acid from food waste. That lactic acid will ultimately serve as a raw material for biochemicals. This means that chemical companies will need less oil for their production in the future.

2024-04-06 13:30:00
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