Biogas : an online toolbox

A brand-new consulting and engineering platform helps farmers to implement their methanisation project.

The Bank of the Territories (Caisse des Dépôts Group), with the support of the European Commission's European Investment Advisory Hub and the European Investment Bank (EIB), has just put a "methanisation toolbox" online, which can be accessed at: www.toolbox-methanisation.fr. "It provides farm-based methanisation project leaders with information and tools to help them prepare the evaluation and structuring of the general economy of their project. Its aim is to promote optimal project set-up and to advise small and regional methanisation project owners", states a press release dated 2 March 2021.

This toolbox consists of three pillars

Understanding the challenges of on-farm methanisation: The aim here is to explain how the methanisation process works and the technical dimension of achieving it, to ask the necessary questions before embarking on such a project, and to share the video testimonies of farmers already involved. An overview of the players in the on-farm methanisation ecosystem completes this first approach.

Structuring your project: The "methanisation toolbox" enables you to size up your project at this stage. In this sequence, the farmer has a number of elements to begin the process: he can identify the different stages of the project, the related legal arrangements (e.g., the types of contracts that exist) and grasp the issues involved in lifting the bank debt.

Managing the economics of your project: This area, which has an educational dimension, provides you with a real "step-by-step" financial engineering resource via a "calculator" and online business plan models. The fundamental notions are explained, and these notions are then put into practice through project examples. Finally, the user is offered a simplified business plan simulation that can be used directly.