Role of Biotechnologies for Biofuel Production in Developing Countries

The Bioenergy dimension

Jeff TschirleyEnvironment, Climate change and Bioenergy (Nrc)Food & Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Rome, Italy12 October 2007

Food security issues Food availability, access, stability and use Fluctuations and increases in food

commodity prices Food availability at times of crisis Restrictions on access to markets Tradeoffs in different bioenergy systems

as regards rural employment, income opportunities

Where are the hungry?

Developed market economies

9Countries in transition

25

Sub-Saharan Africa

206

Near East and North Africa

38

Asia and Pacific

524

Latin America and

Caribbean52

854 million(820 in developing

countries)

212 million India 150 million China

Environmental and sustainability issues Rapid land use change Land rights and tenure Total land availability Availability and quality of water resources Effects of agro-chemicals Distribution of benefits Wages, rural employment

Some key questions What are the bioenergy options for food insecure

countries – trade, employment, technology? How may fluctuating commodity prices – potentially

positive for producers, negative for poor consumers – affect food availability?

Can inequities (land tenure, market access, etc) be reduced?

Who is best placed to anticipate, monitor and address conflicts?

How may changing bioenergy technology (1st v. 2nd generation) affect tropical developing countries?

How is FAO contributing? Bioenergy programme facility - direct assistance to

countries, guidelines, data, country analysis Knowledge – Webshore http://www.bioenergywebshore.com

International bioenergy information system (iBis) Partnerships – International Bioenergy Platform,

Global Bioenergy Partnership Analysis – BEFS, SOFA 2008 Structural and programme re-orientation

Fuel FeedstockCurrently produced

GHG reduction v. petroleum

Production cost

Biofuels yield per hectare Land types

1st generation biofuels, commercially available

Ethanol

grains (wheat, maize)

US, Europe, China low-moderate moderate moderate cropland

Biodiesel (SVO, FAME)

oil seeds (rape, soy, sunflower) US, Europe low-moderate moderate low cropland

1st generation biofuels (commercially available mainly in developing countries)

Ethanol sugar caneBrazil, India,

Thailand high low-moderate high croplands

Biodiesel/SVO palm oil Southeast Asia moderate low-moderatemoderate-

high coastal lands

Biogas (CNG)wastes, crops Europe, India high low-moderate high all land

2nd generation biofuels (not yet commercially available)

Ethanolcellulose, residues none high moderate-high* high

croplands, marginal lands

Biodiesel (BTL)cellulose residues none high moderate-high* high

croplands, marginal lands

Other

Biodiesel/SVO jatrophaSouth Asia,

Africa highmoderate-

high** low-moderate degraded lands

Biogas (SNG, GtL)biomass, residues all high moderate high all land

Fritsche, 2

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g C

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q p

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h f

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1st generation biodiesel

2nd generation biodiesel

fossil diesel

1st + 2nd generation EtOH

CNG

GHG emissions from transport fuels; ; data in g/kWh incl. upstream life-cycles and by-product credits (from: GEMIS 4.4)

Some key challenges Policy and legislative frameworks that facilitate

sustainable approaches to bioenergy development Estimating national bioenergy production potential

with sufficient accuracy for informed national decisions

Coordinating bioenergy investment flows against realistic policy and programme objectives

Certifications schemes that are flexible, cost effective and do not penalize participation by small-scale producers

Mechanisms for developing countries to compete with technological change

Thank you