Ductor, a Finnish-Swiss biotechnology company, will develop up to 200 new biogas and sustainable fertilizer projects in Europe and North America in the next three years. The company received a significant investment from BW Group, one of the world’s leading maritime groups in the tanker, gas, and offshore segments.

The new projects such as biogas plants will use agricultural or fish waste to create two separate products: renewable biogas and sustainable organic fertilizer. This circular economy model will help significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from both the energy and agriculture sectors. Building the new facilities will be a clear move towards making the EU’s economy more sustainable, as stated in the new European Green Deal, with the goal of turning the climate and environmental challenges into opportunities.

The new facilities will be built in Germany, Poland, France, Spain, Norway, and the United States, among others. They are planned to be in operation within a few years.

“As company owners we need to push and do our utmost to counter climate change. Ductor’s goal is to use the circular economy as a weapon in this fight and now, with the help of BW Group, we can speed up our operations,” Ari Mokko, founder and CEO of Ductor, says.

With their investment, BW Group will become a major shareholder in Ductor as well as a strategic partner. Andreas Beroutsos, a senior executive at BW and now a board member of Ductor, says, “BW Group has been focused on the energy transition for some time, with prior investments in batteries, renewables, water treatment, and other technologies to address global challenges. Ductor has a unique solution producing two valuable outputs from waste: biofuels and organic fertilizers. We are delighted to be partnering with Ari Mokko, Ductor’s visionary founder, his team and their existing investors to help Ductor grow and make a positive contribution to resolving some of today’s environmental, energy, land and food challenges.”

During the last year, Ductor opened its first operational sustainable fertilizer and biogas facility in Mexico and contracted for three new facilities in Poland. The company already has around 75 new projects under development in Europe and North America.

An urgent need for sustainable agriculture

The transition to sustainable agriculture is driven by new technologies, research and innovation. This “new agriculture” will not only slow down climate change but also provide sustainable economic rewards for farmers by creating new business opportunities with a circular economy. Ductor’s fermentation technology converts agricultural waste, such as chicken manure, into efficient organic fertilizer for large-scale farming and biogas in the form of biomethane to replace fossil fuel energy. Healthier soils and regenerative farming also contribute to less polluted waters.

“Ductor is committed to increasing agricultural biodiversity, enriching soils, improving watersheds, and enhancing ecosystem services. We need to capture carbon in soil and above-ground biomass, reversing current global trends of atmospheric accumulation. Our job is to help nature do its job better by transforming organic waste into carbon-negative fertilizers and renewable energy,” Mokko says.