EVENT The 5th European Biomass to Power conference in Berlin, Germany brought together senior executives from several countries, representing the entire value chain, such as power producers, regulatory bodies, raw materials providers and researchers, as well as other influential stakeholders. STRONGER GLOBAL BIOMASS DEMAND, IF CLIMATE POLICY IS TAKEN SERIOUSLY ”Low oil prices have a strong impact today on the bioenergy industry. An oversupply of biomass might occur in the short run,” said Dr Heinz Kopetz, President, World Bioenergy Association (WBA) in his opening speech at the 5th European Biomass to Power conference held last month in Berlin, Germany. ACCORDING TO KOPETZ, pellets prices are at a 3-year low and sales of biomass boilers dropped sharply. But on a more optimistic note, he said that serious climate policy will drive up the demand for biomass in all market segments sooner or later. – Co-firing of pellets in the USA is discussed intensively and highlighted. Carbon taxes or other instruments will be executed to increase the price of carbon, explained Kopetz. AEBIOM’s annual statistical report, European Bioenergy Outlook 2014, shows that biomass contributed 123 Mtoe to gross inland energy consumption in the EU-28 countries during 2012, with 20 Mtoe of losses resulting in a final consumption of 102 Mtoe. Most of this consumption - 73 percent - is for heat, with the remainder split almost equally between electricity generation and biofuels for transport. The two day conference covered topics such as ‘Nordic market insights: Role of biomass in utility energy mix analysis of current policy, legislation & sustainability developments’ and many other themes. It provided an in-depth look into case studies giving practical examples of planning, finance and technology strategies utilised for biomass cogeneration projects. Swedish objectives The slightly gloomy depiction of the European biomass industry presented by some conference participants was balanced by Robert Fischer from the Swedish Bioenergy Association (Svebio), where he is responsible for coordinating the Biomass to Power platform. Svebio’s goal is to increase biopower in Sweden by 1 TWh per year until 2040, resulting in a total of 40 TWh. – The share of biomass in Sweden’s total final energy use in 2013, including exported power, was 130 TWh or 33.5 percent of the total 389 TWh, explained Fischer. 54 Bioenergy International No 82, 6 -2015 He described a significant economic potential for new CHP-plants in existing district heating (DH) networks and large industries as well as small-scale combined heat and power (CHP) in local DH facilities in rural areas, smaller industries and buildings replacing existing heating boilers. – Small scale is flexible and can be integrated and complemented; the small-scale CHP potential in Sweden is estimated to be about 10 TWh, explained Robert Fischer. He added that the Swedish farmers´ association´s (LRF) vision of fossil-fuel-independent agriculture in Sweden could become a reality through renewable energy from its own resources by 2030. Vattenfall objectives Gunther Müller, from Vattenfall Europe AG, talked about the company’s heat operations in Berlin. He said it is necessary to achieve a fixed reduction in greenhouse gas effects compared to coal, taking into consideration the whole value chain. – We have developed criteria for sustainable resourcing, before standards are set through legislation or the market. Regarding biomass use, these standards fulfil social sustainability requirements such as business transparency, the protection of labour rights, land rights and a responsible relationship with local inhabitants, Müller stated. Müller also informed delegates about Energy Crops GmbH, which is a company owned by Vattenfall with the objective of producing its own biomass. The company is currently market leader in Germany. It cultivates about 2 000 hectares of short rotation coppices located in Brandenburg, Schleswig-Holstein and the West of Poland. Danish conversions Andreas Nielsen-Refs, Head of Thermal Power Strategy at Danish company DONG Energy Thermal Power A/S, said that “there is a large potential for biomass combustion in Northwestern Europe, especially in Germany. Generally the bioenergy can be a bridge to the sustainable, affordable and secure future energy system”. – Dong is a market leader in biomass conversions. Right now the Danish power system is undergoing a major transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy. We have completed two unit conversions, Herning and Avedore 2. The next three units to convert are going to be Studstrup 3, Skaerbaeck 3 and Avedore 1. We expect the bioenergy market is going to grow. It is one of the reasons why we are converting a large share of our CHP portfolio, explained Andreas Nielsen-Refs. Southern small-scale plants Daniella Johansson, from Energikontor Sydost AB located in the southeast of Sweden, demonstrated a pre-study of a small-scale biomass CHP. – Half of the energy in the southeast of Sweden comes from biomass. A pre-study, which was made in 2013 to review the potential for small-scale CHP, was financed by the Swedish Energy Agency and the Swedish District Heating Association, explained Daniella Johansson. She said that Southern Sweden has a potential for 80 small-scale plants. Between 40 to 50 plants in the region can achieve a possible average electricity production of 3 GWh every year. According to Johnsson there are several reasons for investing in small-scale CHP based on biomass, like lower costs for imported electricity. Locally produced electricity contributes to better grid security and gives a strong environmental profile for the company. It is also profitable to be part of the leading development. – Other benefits from small-scale local biomass plants are more locally produced renewable electric power which unburdens the power grid in general. These plants are securing the grid from power outage and they increase the use of biomass and decrease fossil CO₂. They also increase local »
Bioenergy no 6 October 2015
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