Iberdrola España and Agrupal will work to promote the decarbonisation of the Murcia's food industry
- Electrification of heating in the food sector will enable companies to move towards a more efficient and sustainable future.
The Murcia Food Industry Association (Agrupal) and Iberdrola España have signed a collaboration agreement to analyse the possibilities of promoting the decarbonisation of the industrial food sector through electrification and moving towards a more efficient and sustainable future.
The implementation of this agreement reaffirms the commitment of the food industries in the Region of Murcia to reduce their emissions in line with the timetables set by the European Commission. During the 2019-2024 period, companies in the sector have invested 22 million euros in energy efficiency programmes managed by the Public Works and Transport Institute.
The president of Agrupal, José García Gómez, and the representative of Iberdrola España in the Region of Murcia, Miguel Ángel Cerdán, signed the collaboration agreement at the headquarters of the food industry group.
For José García, president of Agrupal, the signing of this agreement "demonstrates our companies’ commitment to continue reducing their emissions and contributing to a more sustainable industry. We are grateful to Iberdrola for having identified Agrupal and its companies as fellow travellers on this journey as a strategic project at the national level".
Miguel Ángel Cerdán highlighted the importance of the collaboration between the company and the group "to be able to accompany the companies that form part of Agrupal in the search for the different decarbonisation methods that best adapt to the industry's own characteristics, allowing them to be more efficient in their production and more environmentally sustainable".
One of the first actions undertaken by the parties is their collaboration in the organisation of the conference 'Innovation, technology and sustainability in the Food Industry of the Region of Murcia’, which will be held tomorrow 17 October in the Royal Casino of Murcia and which is part of the programme of activities that Agrupal is carrying out on the occasion of its 100 year anniversary.
Electrification of industrial processes
A large part of the energy needs of the food sector comes from so-called industrial heat, which is required for a wide range of processes. In addition, due to its wide variety of applications, industrial heat often requires different temperature levels and heat quantities, depending on each process’ specific needs.
Historically, fossil fuels such as natural gas, oil and coal have been used to generate this heat in boilers and industrial furnaces. However, the growing interest in sustainability and the quest to reduce greenhouse gas emissions means that industry is increasingly looking for renewable and more energy-efficient sources of heat, making the decarbonisation of industry through electrification essential to progress in the fight against climate change.
Electrification also allows for more efficient use of energy while enabling the implementation of more advanced control and monitoring technologies, resulting in more accurate and efficient management of industrial processes.
Industrial electrification, driven by technological development, and connected through robust electricity grids and investment in storage, as well as the electrification of transport, will allow the renewable electricity generation that is already present to become the tool that the Region of Murcia needs for its social and economic growth.
Q-Zero Alliance
More than 80 companies have joined Q - Zero, an industrial alliance promoted by Iberdrola España together with other organisations (Centre for Innovation in Technology for Human Development of the Polytechnic University of Madrid and the Centre for Applied Research and Technological Development Tecnalia) whose objective is the decarbonisation of thermal demand in Spain. The initiative, open to all agents, is a meeting and dialogue point to accelerate decarbonisation, especially of thermal energy demand in both the industrial and building sectors, and to combat climate change.
The alliance is conceived as a shared space open to all actors where all entities can come together, discuss the current situation, identify bottlenecks and develop proposals and activities to accelerate the electrification of heat in the different sectors, maintaining competitiveness and taking advantage of and contributing to realising the opportunities of the energy transition.
Electrification of heat is an area with special particularities, as although there are many barriers common to all businesses, there are also significant differences. This reality poses challenges for the acceleration of the decarbonisation of thermal demand, and at the same time an economic opportunity to develop new markets and decarbonisation technologies in Spain.