Technological watch

Electrochaea, a technology company specializing in power-to-gas solutions, is continuing its growth trajectory and is appointing Harald Beschid as its first Chief Operations Officer; The new position was created based on a full project pipeline in Europe and North America. Electrochaea offers scalable energy storage solutions for wind, solar and hydropower, carbon utilization and recycling solutions, as well as solutions to produce CO2-neutral fuels based on a methanization technology utilizing powerful microorganisms.

Harald Beschid’s responsibilities at Electrochaea will include leading the operations and engineering team, and thus managing the implementation of upcoming projects. The graduate engineer with an EMBA degree brings over 15 years of international project management experience in the oil and gas industry. The 41-year-old was previously Head of Project Development at OMV Petrom in Romania and Head of Project Execution at Bayernoil in Germany. He also worked as a Senior Project Engineer at Shell Global Solutions in the Netherlands, as well as at Air Liquide Arabia in Saudi Arabia.

Interest in commercial power-to-gas projects has increased enormously in recent months. The publication of the Green Deal by the European Commission has solidified the urgent need to offset CO2, produce renewable fuels and replace fossil fuels with green alternatives. Electrochaea’s multi-award-winning BioCat system is the world’s most advanced power-to-methane system, converting up to 99,5 percent of the input CO2 to high-quality methane that can be fed directly into the natural gas grid.

Electrochaea’s BioCat system offers a sustainable natural gas alternative that is cost-effective and flexible in terms of time; it can be used wherever electricity from solar, wind or hydropower is to be stored, transported, and used in large quantities. Additionally, the BioCat technology creates opportunities for CO2 emitters, such as cement or sewage treatment plants, to significantly improve their CO2 balance and reduce expenditure on CO2 certificates.

Harald Beschid on his commitment to Electrochaea: “Electrochaea is one of the key thought leaders and pioneers of Power-to-X technology, which is the answer to many challenges of a sustainable and economically viable energy supply. I look forward to helping shape this future together with the Electrochaea team. “

Mich Hein, CEO & Managing Director of Electrochaea GmbH: “With Harald Beschid, we have been able to bring a COO into the team who, with his international management experience, his knowledge of the industry and his technological expertise, will drive the commercial implementation of our upcoming projects and orders and thus the growth of Electrochaea even more strongly. “

About Electrochaea GmbH: Based on biocatalysis, Electrochaea offers a patented power-to-gas technology, which cost-effectively recycles CO2 while producing CO2-neutral methane from excess electrical energy that can be stored and used as required. Industrial-scale plants are operating successfully in the USA, Switzerland and Denmark. Plants with a capacity of over one gigawatt are planned by 2025. Electrochaea’s technology was awarded the Swiss energy prize Watt d’Or and listed by FOCUS magazine as one of the most important technologies for climate and environment. In total, 23 employees work for Electrochaea in Denmark and at the headquarters in Munich-Planegg. CEO is Mich Hein. www.electrochaea.com

Source: Electrochaea, press relase, 2020-06-18.