Basque-French R&D centers team up for algae demonstration project

In Spain, a consortium of six R&D centers in the Basque Autonomous Community, Navarre and France -NEIKER-Tecnalia, National Centre of Renewable Energies (CENER), Tecnalia Research & Innovation, Association of Industry of Navarre (AIN), Association for the Environment and Safety in Aquitaine (APESA) and the Centre for the Application and Transformation of Agro-resources (CATAR-CRITT)- are participating in the European CYCLALG project to drive forward an algae-based biorefinery which aims to develop and validate technological processes designed to obtain biodiesel through algae cultivation.

To meet this objective, the project involves a setup based on the circular economy in which the waste generated is used to provide nutritional components in the very process to cultivate microalgae. CYCLALG is also based on a model of biorefinery that seeks to make comprehensive use of microalgal biomass, extend the useful service life of the waste generated in the process and diversify it into new products of interest in the chemical, energy and agricultural industries, thus giving the microalgae biomass added value and improving the economic framework of the process.

The CYCLALG initiative will be run over the coming three years with a budget of 1.4 million euros, of which 65% is being provided by ERDF funds.