Planning and construction of modular Flex_Methanol® plants for CO2-to-Methanol and Power-to-X
bse Methanol GmbH
LeipzigNew on Amplifa
About bse Methanol
bse Methanol GmbH, based in Leipzig, was founded in 2019 through the carve-out of the methanol business from the bse Engineering Group, whose original company was established in Leipzig in 1990 as an EPCM company. The company develops and builds plants for the synthetic production of methanol from CO2 and hydrogen: CO2 captured from flue gases, fermentation processes or air is synthesized with hydrogen into methanol via standardized electrolysis and subsequently distilled to IMPCA quality (99.85 %). The core product is the skid-mounted standard modular solution Flex_Methanol® in 10 and 20 MW, which can respond flexibly to load changes. The skids are manufactured in cooperation with MAN Energy Solutions SE DWE, and process and catalyst development is carried out jointly with BASF. The project services include EPC-M/EPCM contracts, FEED studies and pilot operation for long-term catalyst testing under flexible conditions. Customers and projects are found in the chemical industry, in the e-fuels/Power-to-X sector, and in bioethanol and energy projects in Spain, Finland, Belgium, Nigeria and Angola.
- Site
- Leipzig
- Processes
- CO2 capture from flue gas/exhaust gas (amine scrubbing, biodegradable amines), Electrolysis (H2 production with standardized electrolysers, flexible/intermittent), Methanol synthesis (catalytic, recycle gas stream, flexible load changes), Methanol distillation (high-capacity columns, IMPCA quality 99.85 %), Engineering, Procurement, Construction Management (EPCM) for bioethanol/methanol plants, Plant engineering / process provider for PtX/PtM plants (Flex_Methanol® 10 and 20 MW), Skid manufacturing of the Flex_Methanol® skids in cooperation with MAN Energy Solutions, EPC-M / EPCM (Engineering, Procurement, Construction Management)
- Materials
- Methanol (CH3OH), Hydrogen (H2), CO2, Oxygen (O2), Catalyst (copper-zinc-aluminium), Biodegradable amine solution (CO2 scrubbing), Bioethanol, Carbon dioxide (0.04–100 %)
- Founded
- 2019
- Industries
- E-Fuels / Green Methanol, Chemical industry, Energy (Power-to-X), Bioethanol / Biofuels, Shipping and transport, Agriculture and food
- 01
CO2 capture (amine scrubbing)
- 02
Electrolysis (H2 production)
- 03
Methanol synthesis (catalytic, recycle gas)
- 04
Distillation (IMPCA quality)
- 05
Skid manufacturing (with MAN Energy Solutions SE DWE)
- 06
EPC-M assembly/commissioning
Processes and Media
Carbon dioxide (0.04–100 %)
From air, flue gases, biogas and fermentation processes; captured using biodegradable amine solutions.
Hydrogen
From intermittent electrolysis with standardized electrolysis units.
Methanol
Target product as crude methanol (65 % purity) and after distillation in IMPCA quality (99.85 %).
Copper-zinc-aluminium catalyst
Catalyst for methanol synthesis, tested in benchmark and long-term tests under flexible process conditions.
Oxygen and heat (up to 80 °C)
By-products of electrolysis, thermally integrated into the plant process.
Locations
Leipzig
DEHeadquarters, engineering and project development
- Materials
- CO2, H2, methanol
- Flex_Methanol® 10 MW skid
- Flex_Methanol® 20 MW skid
- Standardized electrolysis units
- Methanol synthesis reactor (recycle gas operation)
- Distillation columns (high-capacity)
- Pilot plant for long-term catalyst testing
- 1-Tube-Industrial-Reactor-System
Modules and Plants
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CO2 capture from flue gas/exhaust gas (amine scrubbing, biodegradable amines)Engineering | – | – | – | – | CO2 (0.04–100 %, from air, flue gases, fermentation) |
| Electrolysis (H2 production with standardized electrolysers, flexible/intermittent)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Water, Electricity |
| Methanol synthesis (catalytic, recycle gas stream, flexible load changes)Engineering | – | – | – | – | CO2, H2 |
| Methanol distillation (high-capacity columns, IMPCA quality 99.85 %)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Crude methanol (65 % purity) |
| Engineering, Procurement, Construction Management (EPCM) for bioethanol/methanol plantsEngineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Plant engineering / process provider for PtX/PtM plants (Flex_Methanol® 10 and 20 MW)Engineering | – | – | – | – | Methanol (CH3OH) |
| Skid manufacturing of the Flex_Methanol® skids in cooperation with MAN Energy SolutionsAssembly | – | – | – | – | – |
8 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flex_Methanol® 10 MW standard module (skid) | bse Methanol / manufactured with MAN Energy Solutions SE DWE Flex_Methanol® 10 | – | 10 MW | – | Leipzig / project-dependent |
| Flex_Methanol® 20 MW standard module (skid) | bse Methanol / manufactured with MAN Energy Solutions SE DWE Flex_Methanol® 20 | – | 20 MW | – | Leipzig / project-dependent |
| Standardized electrolysis units | – | – | – | – | – |
| Methanol synthesis reactor (recycle gas operation) | – | – | – | – | – |
| Distillation columns (high-capacity) | – | – | – | – | – |
| Tube Industrial Reactor System (1 tube, pilot/industrial reactor) | – | 1 | – | 2024 | – |
| Pilot plant for long-term catalyst testing under flexible conditions | – | 1 | – | 2020 | – |
| Bioethanol plant (EPCM, 280,000 m³) | – | – | – | 1998 | EU |
Additional services
Reference customers
Company History
- 1990
Founding of the original company IE Engineering as an EPCM company in Leipzig, originally rooted in the printing industry.
- 1995
Activities as Owners Engineer, mainly in the agricultural and sugar industries.
- 1998
Management buyout and renaming to bse Engineering; start of construction of biofuel plants in the EU and EPCM contract for the first 280,000-m³ bioethanol plant.
- 2000
Start of construction of biofuel plants across Europe.
- 2008
Entry into the methanol industry: revamping an existing methanol plant into a bio-methanol plant.
- 2013
Start of active business development for the 60%-CO2-to-methanol technology.
- 2016
R&D project to benchmark available catalysts under flexible process conditions.
- 2017
Agreement with BASF for the joint development of processes and catalysts; first commercial orders in the methanol sector.
- 2018
Start of the development of skid-mounted Flex_Methanol® plants.
- 2019
Carve-out of the methanol business into bse Methanol GmbH.
- 2020
First EPC-M contract for a Flex_Methanol® 10 MW skid; founding of bse Construction GmbH; start-up of the pilot plant for long-term catalyst testing; selected as process provider for a plant in Antwerp.
- 2021
Team expansion with experienced PtX experts; cooperation agreement for skid manufacturing with MAN Energy Solutions SE DWE; first FEED contract signing; first environmental permit achieved.
- 2022
Selected as process provider for 3x Flex_Methanol® 20 MW PtM plants in Spain; project development for a 1-GW off-grid electrolysis and methanol modular system in southern Africa.
- 2023
Second environmental permit achieved.
- 2024
Selected as process provider for a 40 MW methanol plant in Finland; MOUs for plants in Spain (40 MW), Nigeria (440 MW) and Angola (250 MW); commissioning of a 1-Tube-Industrial-Reactor-System.