Denmark: Kalundborg Symbiosis

The Kalundborg Symbiosis in Denmark is a pioneering example of industrial symbiosis, showcasing how collaboration between different entities can lead to substantial economic, environmental, and cultural benefits. This project, which began in the early 1970s, involves a partnership between 16 entities, including private companies, the municipality, and public operators in a city with a population of just 17,000 people.

Origins and Development: The symbiosis started with a collaboration between Kalundborg Refinery, a petroleum producer, and Gyproc, a gypsum producer. Kalundborg Refinery supplied excess gas to Saint-Gobain Gyproc, which used it to dry plasterboards in their ovens. This mutually beneficial exchange marked the beginning of a cooperative process that has grown organically over the past five decades. Today, this stream has dried out. The refinery was able to utilize the surplus gas internally. This is a good example underlining that industrial symbiosis streams and connections are developing organically to meet the actual requirements, adapting to new push and pulls as they arise in the local setting, and in the society.

Economic and Environmental Impact:

The Kalundborg Symbiosis produces high  economic value for the companies. The investments are double-digit billion amounts, and in 2022 the growth in GDP in Kalundborg was 26.95; in comparison the average growth in GDP in Denmark was 2 %. Most important is perhaps that the collaboration even offers robustness in times of crisis. Additionally the symbiosis partnership yearly saves

600,000 tons of CO² emissions. This is achieved through the exchange of 33 different streams among

the participants. For example, left over biomass from biorefing and fermentation processes is used for energy production,  chemical residuals from the refinery is used for fertilizers for farming, and sugar residuals from green fuel production is used for prebiotics for humans.

A Municipally Owned Multi-Purpose Utility and Resource Management:

The local municipality plays a crucial role as a multi-utility provider. It manages distributed drinking

water, surface water, cooling water, wastewater treatment, water system management, and district

heating, plus utilization of the heat in wastewater. This integrated approach helps in efficiently managing resources within the network.

Efficiency and Resource Optimization:

The symbiosis has led to remarkable levels of  transformation to green energy and sector coupling. The enery supply has changed from fossil based sources to bio economic alternatives, like green biomethane, green fuels, steam; all of which are based on surplus biomass sources.  Sectors are coupled, a project going on right now relates to collection of the huge amount of surplus heat which the implementation of a district cooling system for the companies opens up for. The surpluss heat can be utilized for district heating in a very big geographic area, for instance by piping it to Copenhagen, 100 kilometers away. The goal is to use all resources and achieve zero waste within the next decade.

The Kalundborg Symbiosis stands as a model for industrial symbiosis worldwide, demonstrating how

environmental stewardship can align with economic and social benefits. It exemplifies the potential of

collaborative approaches in achieving sustainable industrial practices and facing the challenges together. The partnership is hereby a leading example for

similar initiatives globally.

SOURCES:

“Kalundborg — The World’s First Fully Functional Industrial Symbiosis,” CEF, Aug. 29, 2016. https:// corporateecoforum.com/kalundborg-worlds-first-fullyfunctional- industrial-symbiosis/

“Kalundborg industrial symbiosis,” wwf.panda.org. https:// wwf.panda.org/wwf_news/? 204431/Kalundborg-industrialsymbiosis

“Kalundborg Symbiosis: six decades of a circular approach to production | European Circular Economy Stakeholder Platform,” circulareconomy.europa.eu. https:// circulareconomy.europa.eu/platform/en/good-practices/ kalundborg-symbiosis-six-decades-circularapproachproduction

“Kalundborg Symbiosis - The world’s leading industrial symbiosis,” Kalundborg Symbiosis. https:// www.symbiosis.dk/en/