Combatting the greenhouse effect and fluctuations in the price of oil have emphasized the great appeal of biomass - a renewable energy, it helps promote the value of ecosystems, particularly in forests, and is neutral in terms of CO2 and therefore the greenhouse effect. Its impact on local employment is equally positive.
Biomass - a powerful alternative!
Produced by both forests and agriculture, biomass represents a significant energy potential and therefore a realistic alternative to fossil fuels. Dalkia already has experience of biomass inseveral European countries and is in the process of securing its supply chain and proposing increasingly effective technical and economic solutions.
- The positive economic footprint of biomass
- A history of experience in wood energy
- Biomass in Europe - favorable backgrounds, a wide range of solutions
- A strategic position
But what is meant by biomass?
In the field of energy, the term covers three main constituent elements:
- lignocellulosic biomass, or lignin, made up of wood, agricultural residues, straw, wicker, reed, sugar cane bagasse and hay;
- glucide biomass: cereals, sugar beet and sugar cane which can be easily liquefied;
- oleaginous biomass, rich in lipids: colza, oil palm, etc.
The choice of biomass depends on its use (heat or electricity production) and local potential. Every project requires consideration of the supply chain, how it is organized and the regulatory context. For instance many European countries encourage use of biomass through grants, green taxes or CO2 emissions allowances.
The positive economic footprint of biomass
When they grow, plants absorb CO2 given off during combustion of wood.
If biomass were not burned, the accumulated carbonic gas would end up back in the atmosphere through the normal process of decomposition. The impact of its combustion on the greenhouse effect is therefore neutral.
A history of experience in wood energy
Dalkia initially chose to use wood, some sources of which are relatively easy to identify and mobilize: waste from sawmills and furniture manufacturers and wood from palettes. Forestwood may be another useful source, as slash* can be used without entering into competition with other industries such as construction for example.
In France, heating networks powered by wood burners have become much more common since the late 90s in areas where forests have traditionally been operated - Aquitaine, Normandy and eastern France in general. This was given a boost in July 2006 with a significant tax incentive - VAT was lowered to 5.5% for customers of heating networks which use renewable resources for at least 60% of their energy.
* slash: wood residue excluding stumps, roots and leaves.
Biomass in Europe - favorable backgrounds, a wide range of solutions
France is far from being the only country interested in using biomass. Many Dalkia sites in Europe are demonstrating the viability and flexibility of this resource. Some sites have chosen very innovative solutions.
Peat and wood in Lithuania. The boiler first commissioned in May 2006 on the network in Vilnius is one of Dalkia's largest biomass facilities with power of 48 MW for heat and 12 MW for electricity. The boiler is remarkable for its "bubbling fluidized bed" which guarantees combustion quality. The project, which creates jobs and is beneficial for the both the Lithuanian forests and environment, makes it possible to sell green electricity at preferential rates.
Poplars on the Hungarian plain. The poplar, a very rapid growth tree, is one of the "ingredients" of the large biomass facility in the town of Pécs, which Dalkia has recently taken over.
Co-combustion in Poland and the Czech Republic. In Eastern Europe, existing coal-fired boilers are more and more frequently fed with a proportion of biomass (between 5% and 30%, generally wood). This is the case in Poznan in Poland and Usti nad Labem, Olomouc and Krnov in the Czech Republic. This technology makes it possible to produce greener electricity without massive investment.
Agricultural biogas in Germany. In January 2007, in Altmark, in the Saxe region, Dalkia Germany opened 10 biogas facilities delivering 38.5 million kWh of electricity annually from maize and cereal silage. The green waste is enclosed in silos where it is broken down in an anaerobic atmosphere by bacteria. The methane given out is captured to feed an engine which produces electricity through cogeneration.
This production is fed into the traditional network. It is profitable, as German law encourages electricity production from renewable energies. Ten-year agreements with local farmers ensure a constant supply.
A strategic position
For Dalkia, renewable energies are the way forward for the company, future generations and customers. Among the solutions available, biomass represents a strategic axis. In terms of sourcing, plants already used could be supplemented by straw and energy harvests from land lying fallow under European agricultural policy. Research in this area mainly focuses on very short rotation coppices of herbaceous plants such as elephant grass or Chinese silvergrass, and short rotation coppices such as willow and poplar. On the heat production side, it is important to constantly improve the performances of our heating business. This is effectively the most profitable (80% and above) and has the greatest potential.
Dalkia plans to create mini-networks in France: 150 small-scale projects may be launched in France over the next five years. With this network, Dalkia can reach its 20% renewable energy target.
Two other sides of the business are also very interesting - electricity production through cogeneration, and methanation as in Altmark in Germany.
Biomass in figures*
94 facilities across Europe
in 2007.
Total power available:
740 MW.
More than 1 million tons equivalent of wood consumed each year
Heat produced greater than: 1 million MWh.
* Dalkia 2006 data including PannonPower
Video
What is biomass?
In-house research to hone future developments
In Limay in the Yvelines department, the CRPE (Cleanliness and energy research center) is working on optimizing the wood supply chain, the use of heat and the use of heat production.
Tests are carried out on different types of wood and species in order to characterize their effects and ashes. It is also in Limay that experiments are carried out into the energy efficiency of direct combustion of energy harvests and of methanation.
A third possibility is also being studied - a thermo-chemical solution, i.e. gasification of biomass, which at this stage could supply an engine. Feasibility studies are in progress and pilot operations are due to be set up.