Hera Group and Caviro together until 2035 with Enomondo, a joint venture that sets an example in agri-food waste recovery
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Hera Group and Caviro together until 2035 with Enomondo, a joint venture that sets an example in agri-food waste recovery
A new ten-year agreement has been signed between subsidiaries Herambiente and Caviro Extra for joint management of composting, cogeneration and photovoltaic plants: every year, over 230,000 tonnes of biomass are transformed into energy and natural fertilisers. Further investments have been planned to reduce emissions and increase the value of the products. This shared Emilia-Romagna industrial model is thus confirmed as an exemplary case of symbiosis between the waste management and wine-growing sectors.
The Hera Group, through its subsidiary Herambiente – the Italian leader in integrated waste management – and Caviro Extra – a circular company specialising in the recovery of agro-industrial waste from the Caviro Group, Italy’s foremost wine cooperative – have signed a renewal of the framework agreement, extending Enomondo, a joint venture on an equal basis, until 2035. This company, based in the reference territory in Faenza (Ravenna), operates in biomass recovery for renewable energy and natural fertiliser production.
The agreement confirms the two partners’ commitment to strengthening an integrated industrial supply chain model that makes Enomondo one of Italy’s leading hubs applying the circular economy to agri-food. Over the next ten years, new investments have been planned to increase plant efficiency, technological innovation and environmental performance.
A shared commitment to sustainable development in Emilia-Romagna
The renewal of the partnership confirms Caviro Extra and Herambiente’s desire to contribute to the sustainable development of the Emilia-Romagna region by promoting local recovery chains, reducing emissions and ensuring maximum transparency in environmental management. Enomondo currently manages an integrated system that includes a 13.7 MWe biomass-fuelled thermoelectric power plant, composting plants that produce three different types of soil improvers, two plants for municipal green waste shredding and three photovoltaic plants (two under construction) with a total capacity of 1.45 MWe for the self-production of renewable energy. Furthermore, through an integrated district heating network, the heat produced is used in the Caviro plant and partly also in the Faenza industrial district, closing the circle between production, recovery and local use of energy.
Every year, the company recovers over 230,000 tonnes of biomass and organic materials and, through composting, obtains compost fertilisers that reduce the use of chemical fertilisers by up to 50% and improve soil health and crop sustainability. Even combustion residues are valorised: the ashes are almost entirely reused for the production of cement conglomerates and road bases, while only a minimal part – no more than 0.1% – becomes non-recoverable waste.
Investments for lower emissions and purer fertilisers
In recent years, Enomondo has strengthened its role as a reference point for advanced technology in circular biomass management. It has invested 12 million euro to build a new plant for the production of composted soil improver from the agri-food chain (ACFA) and a canopy for fertiliser storage, and has introduced new technologies to reduce odour emissions, eliminate plastic and improve the quality of natural fertilisers. All these measures are aimed at reducing environmental
impact. The 2026-2035 business plan provides for further investments, including 20 million euro for the modernisation of energy systems, which will save over 50 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent per year.
A historical industrial partnership in Emilia-Romagna
The renewal until 2035 consolidates a partnership that has brought together two of the region’s outstanding companies: the environmental expertise of Herambiente, Italy’s foremost waste treatment operator, and the agri-food leadership of Caviro Extra, which valorises the by-products generated by over 14,000 associated winegrowers throughout Italy and beyond. This alliance, launched in 2009, has made it possible to build a replicable model of industrial symbiosis, where energy and soil fertility are derived from what would otherwise be waste.
According to Filippo Brandolini, President of Enomondo and Herambiente, “the renewal of the partnership between Herambiente and Caviro Extra confirms a shared vision: transforming waste into resources, to generate economic and environmental value for the local area. Enomondo is a concrete example of applied circular economy, capable of combining innovation, sustainability and competitiveness. We do not simply process by-products, we transform them into secondary raw materials and energy, creating shared value for the environment and for production chains. This virtuous model has heightened our expertise, and we are replicating it in other industrial sectors. With this agreement, we look ahead to the next ten years with the aim of continuing to invest in technologies and processes that reduce environmental impact and promote decarbonisation.”
“We are consolidating a unique model of industrial partnership, which enhances the by-products of Caviro’s agri-food and wine production chain and transforms them into energy, soil fertility and measurable environmental benefits,” explains Carlo Dalmonte, President of the Caviro Group. The decision taken fifteen years ago to invest in a supply chain capable of generating environmental and economic value for the region, through Enomondo, proves how far-sighted our cooperation was, along with its ability to achieve concrete action thanks to our belief in initiative and collaboration between companies and supply chains. We have been able to transform what would otherwise be waste into opportunity, building sustainable and shared industrial models.”
Enomondo S.r.l. is a 50/50 joint venture between Herambiente S.p.A. (Hera Group) and Caviro Extra S.p.A. (Caviro Group). It has been operating in Faenza since 2011 in the circular economy sector, focusing on biomass recovery, natural fertiliser production and energy generation from renewable sources. Every year, it recovers 230,000 tonnes of biomass through the production of approximately 75 GWh of electricity, 100 GWh of thermal energy and 70,000 tonnes of three different types of natural soil improvers: ACV (Green Soil Improver Compost), ACM (Mixed Soil Improver Compost) and ACFA (Soil Improver Compost from Agri-Food Chain Waste).