InCommodities invests in Beacon to scale Biomethane across Europe

Founded in March 2024, Beacon leverages the combined strengths of Low Carbon – a leading independent power producer investing, developing and operating renewable assets at scale – and Agrivert, specialists in the design, construction, and operation of anaerobic digestion facilities.

InCommodities has joined Beacon as both a minority owner and offtaker, facilitating the integration of Beacon’s biomethane production into wholesale markets. Beacon aims to deliver a portfolio of biomethane plants across Europe by 2030.

“We are proud to partner with Beacon to scale biomethane across Europe. This partnership forms a strong alliance, with each partner bringing invaluable expertise and experience, enabling us to develop, build, and operate projects that directly contribute to the EU’s climate targets”, says Andreas Sommer Schwartz, Head of M&A and Strategic Growth at InCommodities.

InCommodities is a global energy-tech company specializing in energy trading and renewables asset management. This investment is part of a broader strategic growth initiative, as Andreas Schwartz explains:

“We are actively exploring commercial opportunities that align with our core trading business. Becoming an owner of Beacon adds a new dimension to our business model by expanding into energy asset investment, an area where we see considerable potential”.  

Dominic Noel-Johnson, Managing Director of Investments at Low Carbon, added: “We are delighted to partner with InCommodities, one of Europe’s leading energy traders, who will play a crucial role in delivering the Beacon platform of biomethane projects. This new partnership reflects our shared ambition to deliver a low-carbon future by developing biomethane, which has been identified as a critical vertical to help decarbonise harder to abate sectors.”

Agrivert brings over three decades of expertise in anaerobic digestion and biogas technology, while Low Carbon contributes with a proven track record in development, construction and operation of large-scale renewable energy projects. InCommodities enhances Beacon’s offering by leveraging its core energy trading competencies, ensuring biomethane efficiently reaches the market.

Phil Earl, Chief Executive of Agrivert commented: “With InCommodities joining the Beacon venture, we now have expertise across the full value chain to meet our ambition of a building a sizeable biomethane platform in Europe – encompassing project development, financing, design, construction, operations, and offtake.”

Biomethane is recognized as a cornerstone of the EU’s energy transition strategy, with the European Commission setting an ambitious goal of producing 35 billion cubic meters annually by 2030 under the REPowerEU plan. This renewable gas offers significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions compared to fossil fuels, aligning with EU’s broader climate goals .

As a renewable gas with properties nearly identical to natural gas, biomethane can be injected into existing infrastructure. Its versatility allows for application across multiple sectors, including transport, heating and industry. Biomethane is particularly valuable for hard-to-abate sectors, where electrification and alternative renewable fuels are not yet practical.

Casper Elgaard, Head of Environmental Products at InCommodities, highlights biomethane’s potential to drive the transition to net-zero, and outlines InCommodities' role in this partnership: “As an offtaker, we are positioning ourselves to play a more significant role in the growing biomethane sector, leveraging our expertise to efficiently bring the produced output to the wholesale market”.

Biomethane is crucial for energy security and offers an efficient means to decarbonize key sectors while utilizing existing infrastructure. As Casper Elgaard further explains: “Through this partnership, we are leveraging our expertise in managing environmental certificates and pipeline gas to ensure a seamless connection between the production, trading, and delivery. Our close cooperation with Beacon will help enhance supply chain efficiency and contribute to a sustainable energy future”.