[19 Oct 11]  German-French Initiative: Biofuel from Microalgae

27.10.2011, and on the island of La Reunion the photobioreactor plant supplied this year by IGV GmbH went into operation, with a great celebration by the business partners Bioalgostral SAS (BAO) and IGV GmbH. The event was attended by specially-invited decision-markers from the worlds of politics and the economy.

Because the French government has an ongoing interest in the development project, official representatives from the economic region of La Reunion and from France itself were also present.

This event also marked the signing of the contract between the partners IGV and BAO for the delivery and establishment of an industrial plant for the production of biofuels from microalgae with a total volume of 82000 L in 2012.

IGV GmbH, based in Nuthetal, Brandenburg, Germany, is an independent private research institution of medium size, closely associated with industry, and rich in experience and skills in the fields of biotechnology and food processing. The company’s skills and abilities in the biotechnology sector is based on 30 years of experience and development in the cultivation of microalgae, the design and construction of photobioreactors, and product developments from microalgae biomasses.

Bioalgostral, with headquarters in St. Clotilde, La Reunion, France, is a young start-up company (established in 2008), dedicated to the industrial production of biofuels from microalgae.

IGV and BAO have been working intensively together since 2010 within the framework of a co-operation agreement. The first research reactors were delivered and taken into operation in 2011 (LWS05, PBR 500, PBR 2000), and personnel training carried out.

The aim of the co-operation is the implementation and development of new technologies  for the mass production of microalgae and the generation of bioenergy from microalgae biomass for specific projects on La Reunion. With the results achieved from the research and the discoveries made, innovative products will be developed.

The technology used is based on a development by IGV, which is being put into action on a large scale for the first time on the island of La Reunion. The climatic conditions of the tropical region to which La Reunion belongs, and the especially favourable growing conditions which the island enjoys, offer excellent potential for development.

The intention is for the project to be carried out in two parts:

During the 2011 – 2014 period, a number of different glass photobioreactors will be installed on La Reunion by IGV, and the first part projects of a biofuel manufacturing programme will be put into action directly on the island. The intention is for this fuel to be used for the vehicle fleet on the island, but potential biofuel derivatives (Biodiesel/Biokerosine) will also be provided. At the same time, other products from microalgae will be evaluated by the systems and plants supplied. This phase will also include the supply and installation of a 1000 m² MUTL- bioreactor, the basic unit for large-scale systems, which will be used for research purposes and adaptation to conditions of the tropical region. With the MUTL technology, IGV GmbH has succeeded with a development which makes it possible, by the use of a thin-layer process, to double the growth rates of the biomass in comparison with glass photobioreactors, and at the same time reduce investment costs by 60%.

IGV has already gained initial experience in the manufacture of biofuels with other partners and associates. In June 2010, for example, in co-operation with EADS, an aircraft flew for the first time at the International Air Show in Berlin which was powered by pure biofuel from microalgae.

In the second phase of the project, the period 2014-2017, the installed photobioreactors will be used on the one hand for the manufacture of high-value products (for cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, etc.), as well as for the production of the stock material required for the operation of a large-scale MUTL installation. The intention is, by way of expansion stages of 1 ha and 5 ha in size, to prove the economic and technical feasibility of the project.

Mass-flow utilization concepts, such as, for example, the use of CO₂ from waste gases, are likewise at the focus of the developments on La Reunion.Once the project has been completed, the two companies IGV GmbH and Bioalgostral, in close co-operation, will begin operating large-scale systems in the 100-ha range, as well as marketing other co-products.