Co-production of synthetic fuels and district heat from biomass residues, carbon dioxide and electricity: Performance and cost analysis

Large-scale systems suitable for the production of synthetic natural gas (SNG), methanol or gasoline (MTG) are examined using a self-consistent design, simulation and cost analysis framework. Three basic production routes are considered: (1) production from biomass via gasification; (2) from carbon dioxide and electricity via water electrolysis; (3) from biomass and electricity via hybrid process combining elements from routes (1) and (2). Process designs are developed based on technologies that are either commercially available or successfully demonstrated at precommercial scale. The prospective economics of future facilities coproducing fuels and district heat are evaluated from the perspective of a synthetic fuel producer. The levelised production costs range from 18-37 euros/GJ for natural gas, 21-40 euros/GJ for methanol and 23-48 euros/GJ for gasoline, depending on the production route. For a given end-product, the lowest costs are associated with thermochemical plant configurations, followed by hybrid and electrochemical plants.