INNIO’s Jenbacher hydrogen-ready microgrid solution empowers Danone’s pathway to net zero in South Africa

JENBACH, Austria — September 12, 2023 — INNIO Group (INNIO*) today announced that Danone SA will install Jenbacher* technology at its existing power plant in Anderbolt, Boksburg, South Africa. This will empower Danone to integrate a wide selection of distributed energy resources (DERs) such as renewables and storage devices while ensuring business continuity through energy resilience and plant uptime. The instability of the grid, the ambition to reduce carbon emissions and the proposed return on investment motivated Danone to drive energy efficiency with combined heat and power technology while producing distributed power and heat for their industrial process.

“Our Jenbacher microgrid solution empowers Danone to become independent from the electricity grid supply,” said Dr. Olaf Berlien president and CEO of INNIO Group. “Their investment in our ‘Ready for H₂’ technology will drive site energy efficiency and empower their pathway to net zero.”

INNIO’s energy solution will support Danone to keep power up during grid instability. The Jenbacher engines are operating on natural gas as a transitional energy source and can be converted to hydrogen as soon as sufficient hydrogen is available. In addition, the combined heat and power solutions will increase total efficiency and reduce costs and CO₂ emissions.

“Jenbacher energy solutions are an excellent fit for our 2050 net zero carbon commitment, a key performance indicator under the Danone Impact Journey, ensuring business continuity through energy resilience,” said Kid Nkantsu, Senior Director for Operations and Design to Deliver at Danone Sub-Saharan Africa. “With our frequent power supply outages, this microgrid solution will allow us to become independent from the grid, increase production uptime and integrate various distributed energy resources including hydrogen all while reducing our carbon footprint.”

Clarke Energy, an authorized distributor for INNIO’s Jenbacher engines, will deliver the engineering, procurement and construction of the new microgrid facility which will utilize two Jenbacher J616 containerized engines and the Jenbacher microgrid controller, providing a total capacity of 5 MWe. 

Due to insufficient power-generation capacity, there is significant interest in decentralized combined heat and power (CHP) engine plants. CHP engine plants deliver power producers a low cost of operation, low emissions and high availability.

 

About INNIO Group (INNIO)

INNIO* Group is a leading energy solution and service provider that empowers industries and communities to make sustainable energy work today. With its product brands Jenbacher* and Waukesha* and its digital platform myPlant*, INNIO offers innovative solutions for the power generation and compression segments that help industries and communities generate and manage energy sustainably while navigating the fast-changing landscape of traditional and green energy sources. INNIO is individual in scope, but global in scale. With its flexible, scalable, and resilient energy solutions and services, INNIO enables its customers to manage the energy transition along the energy value chain wherever they are in their transition journey.

INNIO is headquartered in Jenbach (Austria), with other primary operations in Waukesha (Wisconsin, U.S.) and Welland (Ontario, Canada). A team of more than 4,000 experts provides life-cycle support to INNIO’s more than 55,000 delivered engines globally through a service network in more than 100 countries.

In March 2023, INNIO’s ESG rating ranked first out of more than 500 companies worldwide in the machinery industry assessed by Sustainalytics.

For more information, visit INNIO’s website at www.innio.com. Follow INNIO Group and its brands on Twitter and LinkedIn.

 

About Jenbacher – an INNIO Group brand

INNIO* Group's Jenbacher* energy solutions range from standalone generator sets to complete solutions for power generation, cogeneration, and trigeneration. Ranging in power from 250 kW to 10.6 MW, Jenbacher engines are paving the way for the global transition to net zero by running on a broad range of energy sources, from pipeline gas to hydrogen. These include renewable green hydrogen and other renewable gases such as biogas, biomethane, landfill gas, and sewage gas, as well as special gases such as syngas. 

With more than 65 years of continuous innovation, Jenbacher technologies enable efficient on-site generation of power, heating, and cooling. Our solutions are applied in a variety of commercial, industrial, and municipal applications. 

More than 25,000 Jenbacher engines have been delivered in about 100 countries. Our global fleet is supported with class-leading services directly from Jenbacher and through our extensive distributor network. Most Jenbacher technology is innovated and produced in Jenbach (Austria), the headquarters of INNIO.

For more information, visit INNIO's website at www.jenbacher.com. Follow INNIO on Twitter and LinkedIn. 

 

About Clarke Energy, www.clarke-energy.com

Clarke Energy, part of Kohler Energy, is a leader in the engineering, design, installation, and long-term maintenance of distributed energy solutions. Clarke Energy can deliver complex installations and microgrids incorporating gas engine CHP units, battery energy storage systems, biogas upgrading systems and solar photovoltaic units. Clarke Energy can supply solutions including a range of low carbon or decarbonized fuels including biogas, renewable natural gas (RNG) and hydrogen.

Clarke Energy operates in 27 countries. Clarke Energy employs over 1,300 staff and has over 7.4 GW of power generation, 1.4GW of which is from biogas, a renewable fuel.

www.clarke-energy.com

www.linkedin.com/company/clarke-energy

 

* INNIO, Jenbacher, Waukesha, and myPlant are trademarks of the INNIO Group or one of its affiliates. All other trademarks and company names are the property of their respective owners.

 

For further information please contact:
Susanne Reichelt
INNIO
+43 664 80833 2382
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