Barcelona will welcome biomethane buses

Barcelona is exploring ways to run city buses on biomethane derived from sewage sludge.

Bosses of the city’s transportation system are looking to turn sewage sludge left over from wastewater treatment into biomethane to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

EU funding through the Nimbus project is used to try to create greener public transport. According to the public transport operator TMB, 70% of its fleet ran on diesel in 2010. In 2020, 75% of its buses were hybrids or ran with less polluting energy.

Biomethane is created by collecting sewage sludge from sewage treatment plants. The biogas created is composed of methane and CO₂. From March the CO₂ will be removed, leaving biomethane, which can be stored under high pressure to be used as fuel for buses.

Currently, only one bus is being tested, but it is expected to have 46 methane-fueled buses on the streets by 2024.