Biomass bolsters energy lead with increased electricity use

44 July/August 2012 | Renewable Energy Focus

Focus on renewable power generation

Biomass bolsters energy lead with increased electricity use

BIOMASS IS the most widely used renewable

energy source in the global energy system, with a

mix of conversion technologies available to create

fuel for the production of electricity, heat and transporta-

tion. Its use for electricity generation has increased rap-

idly in the last two years, with key markets being the US,

Europe, China and India. In fact, it now ranks third - only

behind hydro and wind - as the biggest source of renew-

able energy used for electricity generation.

Common biomass sources for

biofuel production include wood

and energy crops. There are four

main biofuel categories: solid biofu-

els, municipal solid waste (only the

organic fraction), biogas and liquid

biofuels.

In the last decade annual elec-

tricity generation from biomass

increased about 6%. 2010 was a sig-

nifi cant year, with generation up

about 15% on 2009. By end 2010,

around 62GW of biomass-fueled

capacity was installed, generating

249-434TWh of electricity. The big-

gest share of this (10.4GW) operates

in the US, with the next biggest mar-

kets being Germany and Brazil.

Assuming a growth rate of

around 10% (full fi gures are not yet

available), globally installed capacity

is expected to be 68GW by end 2011,

with electricity output in the region

of 270-480 TWh.

Solid biofuelsAbout 70% of global electricity

generation from biomass is produced

using solid biomass in standard elec-

tricity-only plants (which accounts

for 36% of the market) or more com-

monly in cogeneration facilities (64%

of the market). Generally these solid

biofuels are based on wood from for-

ests or turnover plantations, while

conversion techniques are based on

mature technologies available in a

range of capacity sizes.

Solid biomass is used worldwide

in industrialised, developing and

emerging countries in direct-fi ring

or co-fi ring with coal or natural gas.

In industrialised countries however

technologies in use tend to be more

innovative, more effi cient, and gener-

ate lower emissions, largely driven by

stricter regulations to manage carbon

emissions. With further development

or gasifi cation (like the Güssing-con-

cept), solid biomass is expected to be

applied more fl exibly in the energy

sector going forward.

By end 2010, at least 45GW of

solid biofuel electricity generation

systems were installed worldwide.

Assuming annual plant operation

in the range of 4000-7000 full load

hours, electricity generated was 178-

346TWh. For 2011, total installed

capacity in this sector is estimated

to have increased by at least 2GW, or

5%, to 47GW, with cumulative output

rising to 188-329TWh.

The US and Brazil lead the solid

biomass generation market, with

10.4GW and 7.8GW of capacity

installed by end 2010 respectively.

The main feedstocks used in the US

are wood and agricultural residues,

while in Brazil most of its cogenera-

tion plants use sugarcane bagasse.

China and India are other key mar-

kets. In 2010, China’s installed capac-

ity increased to 4GW from 3.2GW at

end 2009, while in India capacity dou-

bled to 3GW.

Signifi cantly, more than 50%

(143.2TWh) of the electricity gen-

erated from solid biomass is pro-

duced in OECD countries. Just under

half of that (70TWh) is in the Euro-

pean Union (EU) with the key mar-

kets being:

• Germany, with 12TWh (end 2010);

• Finland, with 10.4TWh;

• Sweden, with 8.4TWh; and

• Austria, with 6.7 TWh.

Municipal solid wasteIn many countries municipal solid

waste (MSW) is used for electric-

ity production in incineration plants. Snapshot of the global biomass power market by end 2011

Cumulated installed capacity

2011 (GW)

Growth rate 2010

to 2011(%)

Operating time(Hr)

Estimated electricity

generation 2011(TWh)

Solid biomass 47 0.06 4,000 7,000 189 331

Biogas 10 0.10 4,000 7,000 41 72

Municipal solid waste

8 0.05 4,000 7,000 32 56

Liquid Biofuels 2 1.00 4,000 7,000 10 17

Total biomass 68 4,000 7,000 273 477

REF_0412_Status_Biomass 44 17-08-12 10:12:29

45July/August 2012 | Renewable Energy Focus

� Solid Biomass � Renewable MSW � Biogas � Liquid Biofuels

300 TWh

250 TWh

200 TWh

150 TWh

100 TWh

50 TWh

0 TWh

North America South &CentralAmerica

Europe &Eurasia

Middle East Africa Asia Pacific Total world


The organic fraction of MSW is often

considered as solid biomass and used

in thermal waste treatment facilities

generating electricity and heat, most

notably in Europe, the US and Japan.

In many countries waste man-

agement strategies are still in their

infancy. Annual market growth rate

for the MSW-fuel generation market

has averaged around 5% over the last

decade, a rate expected to continue

in the coming years. In 2010, about

30TWh was generated from organic

MSW, with 32TWh expected for 2011.

OECD-countries account for about

90% of the incineration plants oper-

ating worldwide. The US heads the

MSW generation table, with 9.3TWh

produced in 2010, followed by Ger-

many (4.5TWh) and Japan (3.4TWh).

In the EU more electricity from

renewable MSW is generated in elec-

tricity-only plants (55%). Around

45% is provided by combined heat and

power (CHP) plants. In 2010 the total

electricity production from MSW was

around 17.3TWh. For 2011, annual

electricity output is expected to be

around 18.3TWh.

BiogasBiogas can be produced from

dumped organic waste during the

aftercare of landfi lls, sewage sludge

from waste-water treatment facilities,

organic food waste from household and

food processing industries, and from

agricultural energy crops or manure.

Around 27% of the biogas produced in

the EU originates from landfi lls, 10%

from sewage sludge fermentation and

the remaining 63% from diverse sub-

strates (mainly from agriculture).

Biogas produced via anaerobic

digestion can be used in cogeneration/

CHP plants or purifi ed to natural gas

quality and fed into existing gas pipe-

lines. Electricity generation using

CHP plant is a mature technology,

recognised as being very effi cient for

on-site applications in energy inten-

sive sectors with a high heat demand

or for use in district heating schemes

for residential areas.

In rural areas of industrial coun-

tries, heat demand tends to be too low

to warrant a CHP-based biogas plant.

For these areas, purifi cation to nat-

ural gas quality is a more common

Regional breakdown of electricity generation from biofuel sources in 2011 (estimated minimum annual output)

Biomass remains the most widely used renewable energy source and its use for electricity generation is growing (Photo: Shutterstock)


46 July/August 2012 | Renewable Energy Focus


option adopted. The purifi ed biogas is

fed into the natural gas transmission

network so it can be used at another

location for electricity and heat gen-

eration. Purifi ed biogas can also be

used in the transport sector, in vehi-

cles converted or designed to run on

natural gas.

Again, industrialised countries

dominate when it comes to the use

of electricity generation from bio-

gas. Indeed, OCED countries account

for 95% of the market, producing

around 40.4TWh from biogas plants.

Installed biogas-powered capacity is

estimated to be about 5.8GW world-

wide. Assuming a growth rate of 5

% in 2011, OECD biogas electricity

generation is now around 42.5TWh,

while installed capacity is up to

around 6.1GW.

With about 15TWh produced in

2010, Germany leads the market, fol-

lowed by the US (9TWh) and the UK

(6TWh). Generally across the EU,

biogas use is increasing (driven the

Renewable Energy Directive, which

includes renewables heat and trans-

port related targets as well as elec-

tricity generation). Broad growth is

expected across the EU, but most

notably in Italy, France, Spain, Czech

Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.

Growth is also expected in Thai-

land and Malaysia, while in Africa

and, to a lesser extent, the Middle

East, interest in using biogas (espe-

cially landfi ll gas) for energy produc-

tion is also increasing.

Liquid fuelsTo date, there is limited use of liq-

uid biofuels for electricity genera-

tion. Instead, the transport sector is

the main market. However, in 2010

about 5.1TWh of electricity was pro-

duced from liquid biofuels, mainly via

CHP plants in OECD countries. The

main markets were Italy, with around

2.4TWh, and Germany, with 2.1TWh.

Electricity production from liquid bio-

fuels has however stagnated in recent

years, so output is expected to remain

at the 5TWh level in 2011.

Driven by goals under the Renew-

able Energy Directive, Germany plans

to extend its use of biofuels, mixing

it with conventional, oil-based fuels

to make a so-called blended fuel. It

aims to double the share of bioetha-

nol within petrol from 5% at present

to 10%.

This “new” blended fuel, dubbed

E10, is now sold at petrol stations

across the country. However, so far

E10 has not achieved the sales hoped

for, with the public resistant to change

and vehicle manufacturers refusing to

uphold guarantees if the blended fuel

has been used.

Liquid biofuels are used mainly for transport so far although public sales of blended fuels such as E10 in Germany have failed to take off as hoped (Photo: Shutterstock)

US drought now hitting hard

US ethanol production has plunged to a two-year low and pressure is mounting on the US Environmental Protection Agency to waive the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). This mandates that 13.2bn gallons of ethanol must be produced this year. Calls to waive the RFS come in the wake of the worst drought the US has experienced in 55 years.

The drought, in combination with current low level of US corn stocks, has raised prices of fodder for livestock, putting increasing economic pressure on meat and poultry producers - around 40% of the US corn harvest is pro-cessed in ethanol distilleries, and one third of this is returned to the fodder market as high protein feed. At the same time, US etha-nol producers are also struggling.

Production of fuel ethanol – produced from fermenting sugar or starch bearing crops such as corn – has dropped to around 800 thousand barrels per day (kb/d) in the US, the lowest level in two years, according to the latest monthly Oil Market Report (OMR) from the International Energy Agency (IEA), published today. The continued absence of rain, in combination with very low US corn stocks, have driven up corn prices to record highs, says the IEA. These high corn prices, in combination with falling ethanol prices, have slashed etha-nol producers profi t margins.

This has led to a some ethanol plants reducing or temporarily halting production, leading to the two-year low in ethanol output. “Given the current situation, we see US ethanol production at an average around 850 kb/d in 2012, 60 kb/d lower than in 2011”, noted the OMR. “For the RFS to be waived, however, it needs to be proved that it is inducing eco-nomic harm on livestock produc-ers who can not aff ord to pay for corn at the heightened price levels,” says the IEA.

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Biomass bolsters energy lead with increased electricity use