Decarbonizing high-temperature industrial processes is probably one of the most complex challenges of the energy transition. Replacing natural gas in furnaces, boilers, or dryers is not easy, and renewable solutions must combine technical feasibility, operational stability, and economic competitiveness.
He has been operating in that field for more than two decades. Andrés Ponce, a mechanical engineer and one of the founders of WtEnergy Advanced Solutions in 2017. His approach is that gasification can offer a technical solution to transform biomass and complex waste into bio-Syngas usable by industry.
The company has recently closed. a funding round of 10 million euros led by SC Net Zero Ventures (Suma Capital), with the participation of Shell Ventures —which is investing in Spain for the first time— and Cemex Ventures. “We are already undertaking commercial projects, but we need capital to sustain that growth.”, Ponce explains. “This round allows us to accelerate growth and address all the projects we have in the pipeline.”.
The funds will be used to strengthen the working capital necessary to execute the portfolio of ongoing commercial projects, to complete the hydrogen demonstration project HYIELD (aimed at producing green hydrogen from bio-waste) and advance in ESCO-type models that allow investing alongside the client and reducing their exposure to CAPEX. “We want the customer to be able to decarbonize and save from day one without having to bear the entire investment.”, summarizes.
Ponce began working with gasification in 2003, designing and commissioning several plants—three in Spain and one in Portugal—two of which are still operating in the meat and bone meal sector. The other two generated electricity, but regulatory changes in Spain in 2012 made these types of projects unprofitable. “That’s when we decided that we weren’t going to do anything else that depended on an OPEX subsidy.”, He states. Since then, The strategy has focused on energy saving already the direct thermal replacement in industrial processes, without depending on electricity premiums or auctions.
Ideal technology for heat-intensive sectors
Currently, the company has three gasification projects in the commissioning phase These plants are expected to become operational during the first half of 2026 in the meat, paper, and cement sectors. According to Ponce, gasification has demonstrated the ability to process fractions that don't always fit into other processing methods. “In the meat and bone meal sector we had a good opportunity; it is a residual fuel with high chlorine or sulfur content, complex to handle.”, he explains.
In the paper sector, the proposal consists of valuing the rejection of pulper along with biomass to generate steam and replace natural gas. In cement plants, the syngas produced by gasification of RDF (Refuse-Derived Fuel) is introduced into the kiln via an additional injection line to reduce petroleum coke consumption.
In these projects, existing facilities are not dismantled, but a parallel system is added that allows the replacement of the 50% and 100% fossil gas, depending on the case. “These are projects with a very important circularity, because we prevent the waste from going to landfill and use it as fuel to produce steam and reduce natural gas consumption and emissions.”, he points out.
In this respect, European regulations are tightening: By 2035, only 101% of municipal waste will be able to end up in landfills.. Although this objective does not directly apply to industrial waste, it signals a broader trend towards reducing landfilling and promoting waste recovery. In Spain, approximately 30-351 tonnes of municipal waste is still landfilled, which foreshadows increasing pressure to find solutions for industrial waste fractions that lack viable recycling options.
Ponce believes that increasing incineration should not be the answer and advocates solutions capable of valorizing mixtures of biomass and residual fuels where recycling is not viable and there is industrial demand for thermal energy.
What does gasification offer compared to other options?
For years, gasification has suffered from the discrediting of failed projects, especially when Syngas was intended for internal combustion engines to generate electricity. “What really damaged gasification wasn’t so much the gasifier, but the cleaning of the Syngas,”, He explains. Problems associated with condensed tar and variations in gas composition compromised engine reliability.
Syngas produced by air gasification, intended for these uses, typically contains between 10 and 151% hydrogen, similar proportions of carbon monoxide and CO₂, around 51% methane, and a significant fraction of nitrogen from the air, around 50% nitrogen. It is a suitable gas for generating steam, heat transfer fluid, or hot air.
In operation, Ponce highlights three advantages over direct combustion. The first is flexibility in the face of fuel variability, key when working with heterogeneous waste; in this scheme, thanks to the pretreatment of the Syngas, “"The boiler doesn't get as dirty, it doesn't corrode as much... and it has a longer lifespan.".
The second one is the tar management. “In the projects we are doing, there is no condensed tar. We have managed to prevent it from condensing.”, He points out that the process is configured to keep them in a gaseous phase and oxidize them along with the rest of the Syngas when used in industrial boilers or furnaces.
The third is environmental: Ponce asserts that They have not detected the formation of dioxins or furans.. “We are below the detection limits,”, He states. According to him, the process configuration (multi-stage gasification followed by controlled oxidation of the syngas) avoids the temperature and partial oxidation conditions that normally favor the formation of these compounds, even when processing waste with high chlorine content.
Three ways to utilize Syngas
WtEnergy proposes three routes for utilizing Syngas:
- The first, SynTH (Syngas to heat), is geared towards industrial thermal applications. “We produce the syngas, partially clean it, and then burn it in a controlled manner with low CO and NOx formation, without slag, to generate steam or heat for different industrial processes.”, Ponce explains.
- The second, SynTK (Syngas to kiln), uses Syngas as fuel in industrial furnaces, such as cement plants or lime kilns.
- The third, SynTX (Syngas to X), seeks a higher quality Syngas, from which to obtain molecules such as hydrogen or methanol.
To advance in this last area, the company participates in the HYIELD demonstration project, based on gasification of biowaste with steam and oxygen to obtain a Syngas with hydrogen concentrations close to 50%, around 30% of CO and 20% of CO₂, without diluent nitrogen.
“The goal is to demonstrate the production of green hydrogen at low cost, below 3 euros per kilo,” he says, with an eye on consumers who cannot currently access the existing market, with prices between 5 and 8 euros/kg.
The company is pursuing a local reach model, “wherever it is needed”, with small or medium plant sizes starting from 10 MWt and nearby resources, without depending on hydropipelines yet to be built. “It’s not just about hydrogen; it’s about producing a high-quality syngas that can then be converted into other molecules,”, such as methanol or precursors for synthetic fuels.
Ponce also acknowledges that it is technically possible to produce synthetic methane from high-quality syngas: “There is no technical problem. Making methane from hydrogen and carbon monoxide has been done for decades.”. The decision, he stresses, depends on the market and incentives; for now he sees greater potential in local hydrogen and in the synthesis of molecules such as methanol or sustainable aviation fuels, where the added value can justify the investment.
What makes gasification competitive today?
Gasification also allows the treatment of non-fermentable materials, especially lignocellulosic materials or complex fractions that do not fit into anaerobic digestion. “They work with fermentable organic matter; we work with lignocellulosic matter.”, This is summarized when compared to biogas. Within HYIELD, they will test the gasification of dry digestate and certain biostabilized fractions of municipal waste with few alternatives to landfill. “We don’t want to compete with recycling or other solutions. But there’s a lot of material that needs an outlet,”, he insists.
The industries with the greatest potential for incorporating gasification are those with high thermal demand and access to biomass or waste streams: paper, chemicals, ceramics, metallurgy, or cement. In many cases, the starting point is the operating cost. “Often the choice is between paying for landfill disposal or paying for incineration. Our option is more economical than going to landfill.”, Ponce summarizes.
In addition to this, there is the effect of CO₂: “As CO₂ levels rise, there will be more awareness.”. He also perceives a change in industrial attitudes: “Years ago, we used to knock on doors to explain that they had a problem. Now, many companies know they have to do something. Some are clear on what they need to do. Others still don't know which solution is the best fit.”. Electrification, he adds, is not always viable “by temperature or by network capacity”, And that's where manageable renewable heat gains ground.
In economic terms, Ponce insists that “"What really determines viability is the price of fuel."”. In biomass, it sets typical references between €20 and €28/MWh; in certain complex wastes, the cost can be very low, around €5/MWh, in addition to the savings compared to the alternative of landfill or incineration.
From a finance perspective, the main challenge is not so much regulatory as it is related to CAPEX and risk perception. To mitigate this, the company is focusing on sector-specific benchmarks, replicability, and shared investment models. “The client doesn’t have to make the entire investment. We can invest alongside them and they can start saving from day one.”, He explains. The maturation time for an industrial project is usually between one and two years, although “"There are companies that know they are going to do it, but they still don't see the urgency.".
Ponce acknowledges that social acceptance also plays a role when discussing waste. “It’s normal for people to get nervous when they hear the word waste,”, It admits, and defends transparency regarding the process, monitoring, and emission limits.
For WtEnergy Advanced Solutions, bio-Syngas is a versatile tool: it can replace natural gas in boilers, reduce petroleum coke in cement plants, valorize complex industrial waste and, in the medium term, become a vector for obtaining renewable molecules.