Andorra Advances €10M Biomethanisation Plant for Organic Waste

Andorra's government is moving forward with plans for a biomethanisation plant costing more than €10 million to process organic waste and capture methane for use in cogeneration plants that produce energy from fuel.

The Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Livestock has completed technical studies and is now evaluating the best plant model, including whether to fold it into planned investments by waste management company Ctrasa. Environment Minister Guillem Casal highlighted the challenge of Andorra's limited size, stating that few facilities worldwide are built for such small volumes of waste. Current selective collection yields 1,000 to 1,200 tonnes of organic material annually, with ambitions to scale up to 10,000 tonnes. Casal called this amount "ínfima" and "irrisòria" by international standards.

To make the project economically feasible, officials are considering importing organic waste from neighboring areas such as Cerdanya and Alt Urgell. This would allow the plant to serve both Andorra and nearby regions while achieving the necessary throughput. Casal noted the substantial upfront cost but emphasized the economic and environmental burdens of the current system, where about 70% of refuse is exported due to insufficient local capacity, technology or scale. Andorra already receives some waste from those same areas.

The plant would require strictly pure organic inputs, free of glass, plastic, packaging, paper or cardboard to simplify processing and cut costs. Casal stressed the need for better separation by citizens, businesses and local councils, which handle collections. In parallel, the ministry has launched a tender for a contractor to manage growing volumes of selectively collected organic waste and handle exports through external firms. The contract is designed to evolve with increased participation from producers, councils and public awareness efforts.