Bioenergy International expo & conference review
The third annual Bioenergy International expo & conference was held last week in Prague and delegates certainly had no shortage of subjects to talk about.
The event was opened by Vladimír Vlk, advisor to the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic, who outlined the Czech Republic’s potential in terms of renewable energy.
The country may not be the largest in Europe in terms of production capacities, but it is on the up. Last year consumption of FAME grew more than 60% year-on-year to nearly 141,262 tonnes and domestic production more than doubled to nearly 155,000 tonnes.
The increased FAME consumption is connected to the increase in the obligatory amount of biofuel blended into diesel-oil from 2 to 4.5% last year. This is likely to be raised to a further 4.1% in petrol and 6% in diesel, although this has not yet been approved.
Giving the producers’ viewpoint, Miroslva Bazata, head of biofuel sales for Agropodnik, a biodiesel producer based in Czech Republic, stated the importance of mandatory blending as an incentive for producers.
He also showed that there is sufficient raw material available to meet EU regulation 2009/30/ES and save 6% of greenhouse gases.
Because public knowledge surrounding biofuels is fairly low in the Czech Republic, Agropodnik’s main focus at the moment is to finalise the certification process as quickly as possible so its biodiesel is viewed as being sustainable and a ‘good’ biofuel.
Later in the morning secretary general for the European Bioethanol Fuel Association Rob Vierhout moved the focus to ethanol and updated delegates on progress on the Renewable Energy Directive (RED).
He confirmed what most already knew that the implementation of the RED is behind schedule and proving to be more difficult than expected. The overall regulatory framework is likely to stay unclear until the end of the year and possibly even beyond, he explained.
Uncertainty surrounding sustainability remains one of the key issues concerning eBIO’s members. Many existing models have drawbacks, including not considering the positive impacts of co-products or the positive impact of yield increases as a result of higher demand levels. As yet only Germany has introduced a sustainability scheme.
Indirect land use change is a another point of contention and one which Vierhout believes has the potential to cause severe damage to the sector, both inside and outside the EU. Moving forward the biggest challenges for the industry are to prepare the car fleet to move beyond the E10 blend wall and stop the negative media campaign.
Antti Pasanen, managing director of St1 Biofuels, also expressed concerns about the speed in which E10 is being introduced, let alone E15 or higher blends. St1 Biofuels – a subsidiary of St1 - has a unique Etanolix concept to produce sustainable bioethanol from waste and residues for transportation fuels.
The worst case scenario, he says, is that a delay in European standards leads to an unacceptable fragmented situation os different national standards. Different national incentive schemes, e.g. fuel taxes for E85, can lead to unwanted situations, where locally produced sustainable ethanol can be shipped to other markets.
Sustainability was a consistent theme throughout the event and Marc Gillmann, bioenergy director for Total echoed Vierhout’s thoughts that member states and biofuel operators would not be ready for the RED by the December deadline.
Sustainability criteria are welcome, he explained, but their implementation requires an urgent mobilisation and coordination of operators, national authorities and the European Commission. The Commission’s communication has already been delayed several times so far, and the committee on sustainability of biofuels and bioliquids has not even been created yet.
Biofuel producers, farmers and authorities are only just beginning to study how to implement the RED, and Gillmann worries that these delays may lead to a scarcity of compliant biofuels.
This in turn will force fuel suppliers to pay penalties, and if these costs are transferred to the consumers this may put the European biofuel industry at risk.
It is not easy for oil majors to gain a green image but Statoil is one company that has succeeded in creating a positive image of the biofuel it produces. Because it only purchases fuel with a strict sustainability criteria it has managed to avoid any negative criticism usually associated with food prices and availability.
It is the first company in Norway to offer 5% ethanol to general consumers, but it has not been an easy ride. The company’s story is full of setbacks and obstacles, not least from the government itself.
Dag Roger Rinde, managing director of Statoil Energy & Retail Norway spoke about how the company overcame the challenges to achieve this feat. From the beginning of this year 40% of Statoil’s serve stations will now sell the biofuel Bensin 95, starting with southern and eastern Norway. This will reduce carbon emissions by 11,000 tonnes a year.
In 2009 Statoil also launched diesel with 6% biodiesel throughout Norway. Total emission reductions resulting from Statoil’s biofuel drive in Norway will now stand at about 66,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.
As well as exploring the bioethanol and biodiesel markets across Europe, the conference also had a separate stream looking more specifically at bioenergy. Jan Stambasky, executive board member for the European Biogas Association opened this session by looking in detail at the markets in various countries across Europe. Germany, he explained, is still the world leader. Poland, on the other hand, is still in the very early stages of development, although its substrate pool is the third biggest in the EU. The Czech Republic has seen very fast development in the past two years – but what all these countries have in common is a lack of a medium or longterm roadmap for biogas, something which is urgently required.
The bioenergy stream also covered the biomass market, and Hubert Röder, senior consultant for bioenergy at Poyry took a closer look at biomass resources across Europe. Many raw materials exist for producing bioenergy, including sawdust, which is in demand from the wood pellet producer and bioenergy sectors, wood pellets, which are used in heating and co-firing plants, bark, which has too low energy content to be used for bioenergy and harvesting residues, which is largely unused.
On a global level there is a high demand for biomass resources, and there is growing competition between the traditional wood consuming markets and the bioenergy sectors.
By holding the event in central Europe the conference was able to provide a unique insight into eastern European projects not usually covered. One highlight came from the first biodiesel producer in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The plant was only completed in March this year, and has the full support of the Prime Minister and local government.
Boro Vukadinovic, company’s founder explained the advantages of working in the region including low inflation and significant tax incentives for foreign investors; and the challenges including insufficient awareness of biodiesel and its positive benefits for the environment and local economy,
Representatives attended from over 29 countries across the globe and the various presentations proved to highlight what a fragmented market Europe has become. Above all the main talking points centred around inconsistent sustainability schemes, negative media attention and inadequate support mechanisms.
The event was opened by Vladimír Vlk, advisor to the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic, who outlined the Czech Republic’s potential in terms of renewable energy.
The country may not be the largest in Europe in terms of production capacities, but it is on the up. Last year consumption of FAME grew more than 60% year-on-year to nearly 141,262 tonnes and domestic production more than doubled to nearly 155,000 tonnes.
The increased FAME consumption is connected to the increase in the obligatory amount of biofuel blended into diesel-oil from 2 to 4.5% last year. This is likely to be raised to a further 4.1% in petrol and 6% in diesel, although this has not yet been approved.
Giving the producers’ viewpoint, Miroslva Bazata, head of biofuel sales for Agropodnik, a biodiesel producer based in Czech Republic, stated the importance of mandatory blending as an incentive for producers.
He also showed that there is sufficient raw material available to meet EU regulation 2009/30/ES and save 6% of greenhouse gases.
Because public knowledge surrounding biofuels is fairly low in the Czech Republic, Agropodnik’s main focus at the moment is to finalise the certification process as quickly as possible so its biodiesel is viewed as being sustainable and a ‘good’ biofuel.
Later in the morning secretary general for the European Bioethanol Fuel Association Rob Vierhout moved the focus to ethanol and updated delegates on progress on the Renewable Energy Directive (RED).
He confirmed what most already knew that the implementation of the RED is behind schedule and proving to be more difficult than expected. The overall regulatory framework is likely to stay unclear until the end of the year and possibly even beyond, he explained.
Uncertainty surrounding sustainability remains one of the key issues concerning eBIO’s members. Many existing models have drawbacks, including not considering the positive impacts of co-products or the positive impact of yield increases as a result of higher demand levels. As yet only Germany has introduced a sustainability scheme.
Indirect land use change is a another point of contention and one which Vierhout believes has the potential to cause severe damage to the sector, both inside and outside the EU. Moving forward the biggest challenges for the industry are to prepare the car fleet to move beyond the E10 blend wall and stop the negative media campaign.
Antti Pasanen, managing director of St1 Biofuels, also expressed concerns about the speed in which E10 is being introduced, let alone E15 or higher blends. St1 Biofuels – a subsidiary of St1 - has a unique Etanolix concept to produce sustainable bioethanol from waste and residues for transportation fuels.
The worst case scenario, he says, is that a delay in European standards leads to an unacceptable fragmented situation os different national standards. Different national incentive schemes, e.g. fuel taxes for E85, can lead to unwanted situations, where locally produced sustainable ethanol can be shipped to other markets.
Sustainability was a consistent theme throughout the event and Marc Gillmann, bioenergy director for Total echoed Vierhout’s thoughts that member states and biofuel operators would not be ready for the RED by the December deadline.
Sustainability criteria are welcome, he explained, but their implementation requires an urgent mobilisation and coordination of operators, national authorities and the European Commission. The Commission’s communication has already been delayed several times so far, and the committee on sustainability of biofuels and bioliquids has not even been created yet.
Biofuel producers, farmers and authorities are only just beginning to study how to implement the RED, and Gillmann worries that these delays may lead to a scarcity of compliant biofuels.
This in turn will force fuel suppliers to pay penalties, and if these costs are transferred to the consumers this may put the European biofuel industry at risk.
It is not easy for oil majors to gain a green image but Statoil is one company that has succeeded in creating a positive image of the biofuel it produces. Because it only purchases fuel with a strict sustainability criteria it has managed to avoid any negative criticism usually associated with food prices and availability.
It is the first company in Norway to offer 5% ethanol to general consumers, but it has not been an easy ride. The company’s story is full of setbacks and obstacles, not least from the government itself.
Dag Roger Rinde, managing director of Statoil Energy & Retail Norway spoke about how the company overcame the challenges to achieve this feat. From the beginning of this year 40% of Statoil’s serve stations will now sell the biofuel Bensin 95, starting with southern and eastern Norway. This will reduce carbon emissions by 11,000 tonnes a year.
In 2009 Statoil also launched diesel with 6% biodiesel throughout Norway. Total emission reductions resulting from Statoil’s biofuel drive in Norway will now stand at about 66,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.
As well as exploring the bioethanol and biodiesel markets across Europe, the conference also had a separate stream looking more specifically at bioenergy. Jan Stambasky, executive board member for the European Biogas Association opened this session by looking in detail at the markets in various countries across Europe. Germany, he explained, is still the world leader. Poland, on the other hand, is still in the very early stages of development, although its substrate pool is the third biggest in the EU. The Czech Republic has seen very fast development in the past two years – but what all these countries have in common is a lack of a medium or longterm roadmap for biogas, something which is urgently required.
The bioenergy stream also covered the biomass market, and Hubert Röder, senior consultant for bioenergy at Poyry took a closer look at biomass resources across Europe. Many raw materials exist for producing bioenergy, including sawdust, which is in demand from the wood pellet producer and bioenergy sectors, wood pellets, which are used in heating and co-firing plants, bark, which has too low energy content to be used for bioenergy and harvesting residues, which is largely unused.
On a global level there is a high demand for biomass resources, and there is growing competition between the traditional wood consuming markets and the bioenergy sectors.
By holding the event in central Europe the conference was able to provide a unique insight into eastern European projects not usually covered. One highlight came from the first biodiesel producer in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The plant was only completed in March this year, and has the full support of the Prime Minister and local government.
Boro Vukadinovic, company’s founder explained the advantages of working in the region including low inflation and significant tax incentives for foreign investors; and the challenges including insufficient awareness of biodiesel and its positive benefits for the environment and local economy,
Representatives attended from over 29 countries across the globe and the various presentations proved to highlight what a fragmented market Europe has become. Above all the main talking points centred around inconsistent sustainability schemes, negative media attention and inadequate support mechanisms.
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