Benidorm will improve the sludge treatment at its wastewater treatment plant and increase biogas production, which is used as fuel at the facility
The investment amounts to €146,125 and will help optimize the infrastructure’s energy efficiency and sustainability
Benidorm City Council is set to invest in the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) to carry out a pilot project aimed at optimising the biogas used as fuel at the facility, which is generated during the wastewater treatment process. The project, called ‘Bioboost’, will improve the operational and energy efficiency and sustainability of the infrastructure.
The project has a total cost of €146,125, and the City Council has secured a €74,863.18 grant from the Regional Ministry of Industry to carry it out. The grant is part of the 2026 call for funding for local administrations to promote innovation projects under the ‘Innovative Territories’ initiative. According to the terms of the call, the project must be completed by October this year.
Benidorm Councillor for the Water Cycle, José Ramón González de Zárate, explained that the project will integrate two innovative technological solutions “to improve the anaerobic digestion and sludge dewatering processes in the WWTP’s sludge treatment line”. The councillor stressed that “the aim is to make the entire process more efficient, as optimising the sludge treatment line is a key driver of both economic efficiency and the WWTP’s environmental sustainability”.
González de Zárate recalled that the facility has undergone “continuous optimisation studies”, which have shown that “there was still potential for improvement in the sludge treatment line”. In this regard, the anaerobic digestion and dewatering stages “were identified as the areas where action could be taken to increase the WWTP’s energy self-sufficiency, reduce the amount of sludge produced and improve its quality”.
The improvements to be introduced align with the energy neutrality and environmental sustainability objectives set by European regulations. The councillor noted that the project “is aligned with Benidorm’s Strategic Innovation Plan, the Valencian Community’s Smart Specialisation Strategy and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”.
The investment will introduce two technological solutions. The first involves dosing carbon-encapsulated iron nanoparticles during the anaerobic digestion process. This will increase biogas production and quality while improving sludge dewatering. The second solution will introduce the technology needed to provide an objective, real-time indicator of potential solids losses.
According to González de Zárate, integrating both technologies “will make it possible to optimise biogas generation at the WWTP, reduce the amount of sludge produced and improve its quality, while also enabling the results of the process to be monitored”.
