VINEYARDS ARE NO LONGER JUST A SOURCE OF WINE, NOW THEY ALSO PRODUCE ELECTRICITY: THE LUNGAROTTI WINERIES IN UMBRIA WILL BE USING HARVEST BY-PRODUCTS TO PRODUCE 720 MW/H OF ENERGY PER YEAR. THE LONG-TERM GOAL IS THAT OF TOTAL AUTONOMY

Vineyards aren’t just producing wine anymore but now they’re also creating electricity. The Giorgio Lungarotti di Torgiano winery (considered one of the most important wineries in the Umbria region) has created the first boiler in Italy that is powered by their grape harvest’s by-products.

The project, which is the fruit of a collaboration between the winery, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Biomass Research Centre at the University of Perugia, will produce 720 mwh/per year, which covers 100% of the company’s electricity use for heating, hot water vapor for sterilizing bottles, refrigeration in summer and for cold water for fermentation. The system will also be able to cover 30% of the electrical consumption of the refrigerating machines.

The long-term goal is that of creating a completely autonomous energy source.