NGlobal Magazin 01-2010

Niedersachsen Global www.nglobal.de 36 Energy ons that the Chinese biogas potential is around 145 bn cubic metres per year—enough to supply the en- tire rural population with energy. For now, the plant ordered by a Chinese investor will only have a total installed capacity of 370 kW. But Weltec hopes that the order might set the biogas ball rolling. The Chi- nese customer will put the plant on show at this year’s world exhibition in Shanghai. Criss-cross In biogas generation it is, however, not just the ef- ficiency of the biogas plant that counts. The qual- ity of the organic matter that is broken down in the fermentation vessel is decisive, too. In Einbeck KWS Saat produces the seminal ingredients for the process. KWS seeds are sold all over the world. The best-selling top dog among the energy crops is corn. It is easily grown and produces much organic matter. KWS Saat saw the potential of corn early on. Next to the clas- sical varieties for silos and grain corn, the company offers a full range of seeds for corn as an energy crop. In order to breed crop varieties that grow faster and supply even more energy, scientists have to constantly find new ways of crossbreeding. With some 15,000 test crossings over the last four years, the choice of varieties is big, and only the best make it to the fields. Since 2002 KWS Saat has been able to boost yields per hectare by 20 percent. Where there is light there is shadow. Higher yields, superior disease and pest re- sistance and improved performance in adverse conditions. KWS Saat spends around 15 per- cent of its turnover on R&D to breed highly productive plants. Last year the equivalent of 2.7 million megawatt hours of electricity was being “harvested” in over 700, mostly agri- cultural, biogas plants located in Niedersach- sen. “Just over the last three years we have had incredible sugar beet yield increases of up to 15 tons per hectare.” Philip von dem Bussche, CEO, KWS Saat Biogas in Germany Niedersachsen 350 MW (710) Bavaria 333 MW (1,500) Baden-Württemberg 133 MW (594) North Rhine-Westphalia 90 MW (280) Saxony 54 MW (152) capacity Number of plants Niedersachsen is the land of biogas. Nowhere else in Germany is the generation of energy from renewable raw and waste material as advanced as in the federal state. Sources: German Biogas Association Photo: KWS Saat Photo: Envitec Photo: KWS Saat Biogas in Germany ›