Code of EthicsWhistleblowingPrivacy
ITEN
Home / Services / Feedstock management

Feedstock management: feedstock and digester recipe

We analyse what goes into the digester, what it costs and how much methane it really produces. Then we redesign recipe and procurement.

A digester does not produce tonnes: it produces methane. That is why we judge every feedstock on the cost per cubic metre of methane, not on the price per tonne.

By analysing plants' recipe and procurement, we identify between €150,000 and €500,000 a year in lower feedstock costs per plant.

Why the cost of methane matters

The price per tonne is misleading

Many plants buy feedstock by the tonne. But a feedstock that looks cheap can yield very little: at a plant we ran, for the same price, the methane from some feedstocks cost up to ten times more. An unbalanced recipe also slows the biology, lowers production and increases the digestate to handle.

  • You pay for weight, not energy
  • An unbalanced recipe makes the digester unstable
  • Recipe, procurement and process must be read together
Feedstock field for biogas plants
Feedstock for the digester

What it includes

From the recipe to supply contracts

We follow the plant's whole feedstock chain, from choosing the feedstocks to checking what arrives at the yard.

  • Recipe and supply contract review
  • Recipe designed on the cost per cubic metre of methane
  • Supplier selection and incoming quality control
  • Logistics and traceability of deliveries
  • Nitrogen balance under control
  • Feedstock certifiability checks in Methan.IQ

The numbers

What we follow today and what we achieved

Today we follow 9 plants in feedstock management: 6 operating and 3 in development. At a biogas plant we ran, the new recipe cut feedstock cost from about €680,000 to about €360,000 a year, with an average methane cost of around €0.15/Nm³.

  • 9 plants followed today: 6 operating, 3 in development
  • Between €150,000 and €500,000 a year in lower feedstock costs identified per plant
  • About €320,000 a year less in the documented case
Read the full case
Laboratory analysis of feedstock
Frequently asked questions

Feedstock management: frequently asked questions

What is feedstock management?

It is the management of the feedstock that feeds the digester: choice of feedstocks, supply contracts, incoming quality and recipe. FAR.E Group judges it on the cost per cubic metre of methane produced, not on the price per tonne.

Why judge feedstock on the cost per cubic metre of methane?

Because the digester produces methane, not tonnes. A feedstock that is cheap per tonne can have a very low yield: in a case we managed, for the same price, the methane cost up to ten times more.

How much can be saved on feedstock?

By analysing recipe and procurement we identify between €150,000 and €500,000 a year in lower feedstock costs per plant. In the documented case the annual cost fell from about €680,000 to about €360,000.

Can feedstock management be contracted on its own?

Yes. Every service also works on its own, and we usually start with the recipe and supply contracts, where savings are quickest to measure.

Do you also follow plants under development?

Yes. Of the 9 plants we follow today in feedstock management, 3 are in development: recipe and procurement are set up before start-up.

What does the methane you produce really cost?

We start from your plant's recipe and supply contracts to see where you can save.

Let's analyse your plant