Cooperatives will transform wind turbine power into greener fertiliser
Danish agriculture is in the midst of a historic change, where there is broad agreement that the profession must be climate neutral by 2050. In order to achieve that goal, new methods and products must be used that can lower the emission of greenhouse gases by the individual farmer.
Now the four largest cooperatives DLG, Danish Agro, Arla and Danish Crown have joined forces with precisely that goal in mind. With a double-digit million investment, the co-operatives have founded the company Green Fertilizer Denmark, which will investigate whether the production of more sustainable fertilizer can be established on Danish soil.
"It is the entire value chain from farm to table that has come together for this project. With the newly founded company, we are sending a clear signal that across the cooperatives we will put action behind the ambitions to be climate neutral by 2050. A more sustainable fertilizer solution is an important step on our way towards the common goal, and we assess the potential as being enormous," says Bent Nissen, CEO of DLG and chairman of the board of Green Fertilizer Denmark.
Today, fertilizer is a prerequisite for the global demand for food to be met, and it is therefore widespread in the cultivation of plants for both humans and animals. This is done to ensure optimal growth conditions for the plant, and thus the best possible yields in relation to the area.
The use of commercial fertilizers accounts for a significant part of the CO2 emissions from plant production, as in many places it is produced by energy from natural gas. With fertilizer based on green ammonia from wind turbine power, emissions from commercial fertilizers in Denmark can be reduced by approx. 750,000 tonnes of CO2. This corresponds to the discharge from approx. 250,000 diesel cars. Nicolaj Nørgaard, daily manager at Danish Crown, is pleased that the project is being launched.
"It is an exciting project and timely consideration in a time of huge changes to investigate whether it is a good idea to produce green fertilizer in Denmark for Danish farmers. We want to focus on whether it can be made so that it becomes attractive to Danish farmers, and if it can, it has an effect equivalent to approx. 2-5 per cent of the pig's total climate footprint. The number may seem low at first glance, but it is because our owners primarily use livestock manure as base fertilizer and fine-tune with synthetic fertiliser," he says.
In 2021, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners' Energy Transition Fund announced an ambition to build Europe's largest Power-to-X plant at Esbjerg, which will produce green ammonia based on wind turbine power from the North Sea. Precisely that ammonia will become a central factor in the possible establishment of a production of more sustainable fertilizer on Danish soil.
In addition to fertilizer for agriculture, the ammonia can also be used as fuel for shipping, and the excess heat from production can also be used to heat households.
"We are happy that four such strong players, owned by Danish farmers, are now taking the first joint step towards a more sustainable fertilizer production. Denmark is a leading country in wind energy, and with our strong wind resources we can also become one in Power-to-X, which is necessary to deliver on the major climate ambitions that both Denmark and the EU have adopted," says Karsten Plauborg, partner in Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners.
During the next 9-12 months, the newly established company will carry out a series of feasibility studies, which will form the basis for decision-making for a possible investment in the production of more sustainable fertiliser. It includes studies of possible locations, various environmental studies and planning. If the feasibility studies show that there is the necessary basis for establishing a fertilizer factory on Danish land, it will be ready in 2028 at the earliest.
"It is a project that has a long way to go. It is therefore important that we start the project now, so that in addition to the initial investigations, we can also start the dialogue with business partners, investors, any suppliers and relevant authorities," says Bent Nissen.
If the fertilizer factory becomes a reality, it will produce quantities that can cover Danish consumption - and more. It can therefore both ensure a stable supply of fertilizer for Danish agriculture and become an export product, thus turning what is today an import product into an export adventure.
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