Genoa hosts Italy’s first biogas plant

The city gets on track to circularity

Last week, on 17 June, authorities in Genoa unveiled the Monte Scarpino biogas plant complex – the first of its kind in Italy on an industrial scale, as was reported by the municipal website. This was the formal inauguration but the facility itself had already started operating at the end of 2020. The plan is for it to continue expanding its capacity into the future helping ease the transition to a circular type of economy in the city and region.

From trash to treasure – the new energy production model

The plant was built and is managed by Asja under a concession from the municipal waste company AMIU Genova. During the short time of its existence, it has already produced 2,000,000 m³ of biomethane gas from organic waste. When fully operational it is expected to reach a capacity of 5.5 million cubic metres per year, which will be injected into the high-pressure gas network and meet the energy needs of almost 3,700 families.

“With this plant, our city takes a further step towards a future based on the circular economy. And the Scarpino site, where the waste treatment plant is under construction, is the proof of the path taken by the Municipality of Genoa and Amiu towards management of the waste cycle that increasingly looks towards sustainability,” explained Environment Councilor Matteo Campora on the occasion.

Reportedly, there is also an electrical energy production component at the plant as an additional step towards decarbonization.

City officials extolled the virtues of the new facility, which in their opinions represents a significant improvement to persistent problems in the Scarpino area.

“The recovery process of the Monte Scarpino site continues, which today we rightly call a 'Plant Hub' and not simply a landfill,” explained Pietro Pongiglione, president of AMIU Genova, concluding that “the three historical problems of water pollution, the reduction of waste disposal and atmospheric pollution find the solutions that the territory has been waiting for”.