Seville Turns 35 Tons Of Unused Oranges Into Electricity

Illustrations. (Unsplash / @ moniqa)

JAKARTA - Famous for its citrus fruit, Seville is now trying to use its oranges to generate electrical energy.

Seville oranges are renowned for their fresh, thick flavor and just the right acidity. Because of this, Seville oranges are widely used for marmalade, to alcoholic drinks such as Cointreau and Grand Marnier.

Recently, oranges in the city are being tried to generate electricity by turning it into biogas. Seville's water company Emasesa is testing a scheme to generate energy from unused oranges.

By collecting oranges that fell and dumped on public roads, this member of Aqua Publica Europea managed to collect 35 tons of citrus fruit to be extracted into biogas. Meanwhile, the skin is processed into manure.

The electricity generated from the biogas is used as an energy source to power the Copero EDAR Wastewater Treatment Plant in the area.

From the number of fruits, it is expected to generate electricity of around 1,500 kWh or the equivalent for the consumption of 150 houses. Thus, the water treatment plant has its own electricity supply. The total investment spent by the intrigue of this project is 250 thousand euros.

Illustration. (Unsplash / @ erol)

"Emasesa is now a role model in Spain for sustainability and the fight against climate change," said Sevilla Mayor Juan Espadas Cejas at a press conference at the launch of the project, as reported by Euronews.

It is known, Spain in 2018 launched a program to shift its entire electricity system to renewable energy sources by 2050. And, followed by decarbonizing all of its economic activities shortly after that.

New permits for drilling for fossil fuels, exploiting hydrocarbons and fracking wells will be banned. One fifth of the country's budget will go towards measures that reduce climate change.