From hydrogen to salmon, from methane to power: the birth of heavy trucks on the former site of Bekart, the first industrial circular economy project in Europe – ValdarnoPost – Valdarno News

From a factory closure to a project that takes Fegelein into the future: the former Bekart site, inactive since 2018, will become home to the first example of a circular economy in Europe It can be applied to various industrial sectors, from energy to food production. A completely environmentally sustainable model, with no impact on the environment thanks to renewable energy and the reuse of waste, from one production sector to another.

The project is called H2 Era Green Valley, and includes a series of companies and therefore different but interconnected production activities. HGV actually envisages building an industrial park starting from A photovoltaic power plant, a plant with a capacity of 140 million kilowatt-hours will be built in the area of ​​Bellosgardu.In a former mining area. The electricity thus produced (another 10 million kilowatt-hours from solar panels on the roofs of the former Bekart factory), as well as water from the plant’s nine active wells, will be used to power a series of different production processes that will find their home here within the warehouses in which Tire wire production. These activities are: Green hydrogen production plantWith hydrogen dispenser for cars and vehicles. Gas power plant (the first in Italy).Which converts electrical energy into biomethane gas, which is suitable for vehicle operation and home heating; Then again The vertical farm with an area of ​​35 thousand square meters is the largest in Italy. Indoor vertical gardens will produce salads, vegetables and small fruits for retail shelves at scale, reducing agricultural water use by 95%; And finally too fish farm, salmon fish farm, With tanks of 26 thousand cubic meters.

Circularity lies precisely in bringing together all these different products: The photovoltaic power plant will produce clean energy that will be used to operate the hydrogen production plant. The hydrogen, in turn, will be used to power the gas plant that will produce biomethane. The waste heat from the electrolyzer will be used to control the climate inside the vertical farm, while the waste oxygen in the fish farm will be used, along with self-produced energy, all with zero impact.

The total investment, all from private funds, amounts to 170 million euros. The first piece, the photovoltaic system building, should be grounded in 2024., then followed up with a remanufacture of the former Picart location within a few months. The goal is to start all production activities together; Initially, the employment is expected to reach more than 150 people, but when fully operational it is expected to reach more than 300 people, including related industries. The HGV model is scalable and is the first on an industrial scale to release more oxygen than carbon dioxide into the environment.

“Issues of energy, environmental sustainability and the production cycle – President Gianni declared – It is central to Tuscany and we are pleased that a group of companies and investors, both Tuscan and non-Tuscan, have decided to invest in these aspects to give the industrial area a future by generating new jobs. The H2 Era Green Valley project makes it possible to mitigate the economic, social and territorial damage caused by the sudden closure of the production site in Bekaert, which left 318 workers stranded: Bekaert should know that the damage remains and that the region will continue to ensure compliance with the obligations also in favor of the new project Which provides for other licenses already in implementation.”

“With the “H2 Era Green Valley” project called “HgV” – says Federico Parma, creator of the entire project – We aim to define the economic future in industrial circularity, eliminating waste and reducing environmental impact. We are determined to create a world where every resource is used wisely and every waste becomes a new opportunity. The benefits of the project are multiple, not least the creation of new job opportunities in various sectors, including energy, agriculture and industrial production, and the improvement of operations that have so far been penalized for environmental and economic reasons.

“Today is an important day – comments the Mayor of Figlin and Encisa Valdarno, Giulia Mugni – Because the project to re-industrialize the former Picard area was explained and explained to the entire community. An ambitious project that brings with it many innovations that will restore the vitality and dynamism necessary to relaunch the Valdarno region. We have always said that one of the priorities, in addition to relocating workers, was to rework the area to prevent this important industrial plant from becoming a huge concrete graveyard in the heart of Fegelein. Today we are on the right track and the work that the company is doing is really very important. How important is the fact that this reality will bring new jobs to an area greatly affected by the crisis, which today shows an incredible desire to start again not only in the Picard area but also in the many companies that establish themselves in Viglien and Valdarno engraved. Therefore, as a department, it was our pleasure to be available to facilitate every bureaucratic step, along with higher bodies, such as the district.”

For the region, recruitment consultant Valerio Fabiani was also present, Who recalled the history of the Picardt dispute and stressed how the work had been done in recent months to give Fegelein a new opportunity, and avoid leaving the open wound that the now abandoned factory forms.