© Urbaser

• The initiative managed by Urbaser will add value to the urban solid waste combined with wastewater treatment sludge, transforming them into new high-value products such as biopolymers, biofertilizers, and green graphene.
• The new facility is part of the CIRCULAR BIOCARBON project, funded by the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking (CBE JU) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 program. Urbaser leads this consortium, comprising 11 entities, with a budget of €23 million to be invested in the project.
• The biorefinery has been built at the Alfonso Maíllo Innovation Center and the Zaragoza Urban Waste Treatment Complex, in collaboration with Zaragoza City Council.

Zaragoza has officially opened its flagship biorefinery. This new facility, managed by Urbaser, is part of the CIRCULAR BIOCARBON project, funded by the CBE JU under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 program.

CBE JU Executive Director Nicoló Giacomuzzi-Moore, Mayor of Zaragoza Natalia Chueca and URBASER CEO Fernando Abril-Martorell officially open the biorefinery. © CBE JU

Urbaser, a leading company in environmental solutions, is coordinating a consortium of 11 entities with a budget of €23 million to develop this project. The biorefinery will add value to the organic fraction of urban solid waste combined with wastewater treatment sludge, transforming them into high-value-added products such as biopolymers, biofertilizers, and green graphene.

To mark the inauguration, the Zaragoza City Council and Urbaser today welcomed the CIRCULAR BIOCARBON project partners, along with key European stakeholders from industry, politics, and academia, to their facilities at the Zaragoza Urban Waste Treatment Center and the Alfonso Maíllo Innovation Center, where the biorefinery has been built.

Environmental and economic benefits for the region

The event highlighted how the new biorefinery, owned by the Zaragoza City Council and operated by Urbaser, will enable the city to advance traditional waste treatment processes in Zaragoza and its surroundings, such as wastewater treatment sludge and organic waste. These will be converted into high-value final products based on bio-based materials, local sustainable raw materials, and circular production processes. With a strong focus on selective waste collection, the biorefinery is also expected to provide environmental and economic benefits to both the city and the region by reducing the waste sent to landfills.

In the words of Natalia Chueca, Mayor of Zaragoza, “Once again, Zaragoza is becoming a leader in the circular economy. I am deeply grateful to Urbaser and all the companies involved in this project, which will undoubtedly become a model for Spain and Europe. Zaragoza once again demonstrates that by betting on the green economy, we create jobs and wealth while taking giant steps toward shaping sustainable and healthy cities. Zaragoza is already a leader in sustainable mobility, urban greening projects like the Zaragozan Forest and the Huerva River, and in the circular economy, exceeding the national recycling rate. Now, we are also a reference in new technologies aimed at transforming waste.”

Products samples that will be produced at the CBE JU-funded CIRCULAR BIOCARBON biorefinery © CBE JU

The CIRCULAR BIOCARBON biorefinery is a unique model, with process lines implemented in two different locations (Zaragoza, Spain, and Sesto San Giovanni, Italy) for logistical, customer, and market reasons. This multi-site approach will test the biorefinery’s performance across different waste management systems, ecosystems, and existing industrial practices, boosting its potential for replication across Europe.

These efforts align with the European Union’s Circular Economy Action Plan, adopted in 2020. The plan aims to help cities find new ways to add value to high-quality waste streams for reuse, reprocessing, and recycling. Biodegradable waste is a key source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from landfills, accounting for approximately 3% of the EU’s total GHG emissions.

“The launch of the biorefinery in Zaragoza is a significant milestone for CIRCULAR BIOCARBON and Urbaser, contributing to a more circular bioeconomy,” said Fernando Abril-Martorell, CEO of Urbaser. He explained that “the new facility operates with a circular model where innovation takes center stage, shifting from waste and wastewater management to material production, thereby supporting industries in their biotechnology-driven transition. The process will also aid the production of marketable final products, reducing industries’ reliance on non-renewable resources,” concluded the company’s CEO.

For his part, Nicoló Giacomuzzi-Moore, Executive Director of the CBE JU, emphasized that “Today, we launch a circular economy landmark: the CIRCULAR BIOCARBON biorefinery in Zaragoza. This game-changing facility turns waste into high-value bio-based products, setting a new European standard for circularity. It will create local jobs, drive green growth, and save regional resources. At CBE JU, we proudly support this pioneering industrial project, which will spur competitiveness and stir sustainable industries across Spain and Europe”.

Some of the products the biorefinery will develop include coatings for direct consumer products, moving mechanical parts, plastic molding tools, compostable trash bags, graphene-based green devices, biodegradable soil mulches, solid organomineral fertilizer with biostimulant properties, and bio-based liquid biostimulants. These products will be used by both industry and final consumers.

» Author: Marion Kupfer

» Publication Date: 23/10/2024

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