Technip Energies awarded service contracts for waste-to-methanol project

French company Technip Energies has been awarded two engineering services contracts for the development of what it calls a first-of-its-kind waste-to-methanol facility.

The Ecoplanta Molecular Recycling Solutions project, or Ecoplanta, will be built in El Morell, Spain, with contracts awarded by Madrid-based Repsol and co-funding from the European Union’s Innovation Fund.

The plant will be the first in Europe to transform nonrecyclable municipal solid waste (MSW) and biomass into renewable and circular methanol at scale, according to Technip. The company anticipates the facility will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 3.4 million tons of CO₂-equivalent over the first 10 years of operation.

Using gasification technology from Montreal-based Enerkem that converts nonrecyclable waste into renewable fuels and chemicals, the plant is expected to process up to 400,000 tons of residual MSW annually and produce approximately 240,000 tons of methanol.

The two contracts cover the delivery scope of the project, with one covering the Enerkem core process—developed in partnership between Technip and Enerkem—and the other a Balance of Plant contract ensuring integration of all project units. Under the contracts, Technip will provide engineering and procurement services and oversee the integration of Enerkem’s gasification technology.

The awards build upon a strategic collaboration agreement between Technip and Enerkem signed in 2024.

“We are honored to be part of the Ecoplanta project, a landmark in circularity and a breakthrough for waste-based feedstock transformation in Europe,” says Sylvain Cabalery, senior vice president of business line sustainable fuels, chemicals and circularity at Technip. “These awards build on the strategic partnership we established with Enerkem last year and underscore our shared commitment to scaling circular solutions. Supporting the first commercial-scale facility of its kind in Europe illustrates our commitment for a more circular and sustainable future in the Iberian Peninsula, and the ability of our technology, products and services segment in driving innovation.”