Germany-based Spanner Re² claims it has developed a solution that could enable industry to replace fossil natural gas in high-temperature processes with syngas, a fuel mixture composed primarily of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, at lower cost.
The company’s technology enables the direct use of gas derived from biomass and waste materials in thermal applications, such as gas burner lances in industrial ovens, without prior conversion to electricity.
Heat accounts for nearly half of global final energy consumption and around 38% of energy-related CO2 emissions, according to the International Energy Agency.
The traditional approach involves biomass being gasified or combusted, with the resulting energy converted into electricity via turbines or engines. That electricity is then used to generate heat.
However, each conversion step introduces efficiency losses and adds capital cost.
Biomass-to-power pathways can see overall efficiencies fall below 30 to 40% once conversion losses are accounted for, making them less suited to industrial processes requiring continuous high-temperature heat, typically in the range of 800°C to over 1,500°C.
A biomass-powered power plant ©Spanner Re²
Spanner Re² instead feeds syngas directly into industrial burners, enabling on-site heat generation without intermediate conversion.
“With our direct gas utilisation, we are closing a supply gap for industrial high-temperature processes in a sustainable, economical and regionally available way,” said Bernhard Seiler, Sales Manager at Spanner Re².
The syngas produced consists mainly of carbon monoxide and hydrogen and is derived from wood chips, pellets, or other waste-based feedstocks.
Spanner Re² said the approach enables decentralised, on-site gas production and can offer a CO2-neutral alternative to fossil natural gas, depending on feedstock sourcing.
One key advantage is that existing gas-based equipment, including burners, lances and ovens, can often be retrofitted rather than replaced, reducing the need for full process redesign.
The IEA also highlights that high-temperature industrial heat remains one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise, particularly above 800°C.
There are trade-offs, however. Syngas has a lower volumetric energy density than natural gas, requiring higher flow rates and potential modifications to combustion systems.
Gas quality can also vary depending on feedstock and gasification conditions, introducing challenges around consistency, impurities and cleaning requirements.
