Photo: Gamut ONE Studios
May 23, 2015
BY Katie Fletcher
Over the past few decades, biomass heat has spread across Europe, its success largely a result of government and public education and support. Industry leaders such as Christiane Egger of Upper Austria, Gustav Melin of Sweden and Neil Harrison of England are a few standout professionals who have made a mark on their countries’ growing markets.
When the attention of Egger, Melin and Harrison was drawn to biomass heat, an industry for it essentially didn’t exist. Egger helped forge Upper Austria’s prioritization of energy efficiency and renewable energy, assuming the role of deputy manager of the state agency OÖ Energiesparverband. Melin became immersed in the bioenergy business more than 20 years ago, and has served as CEO of the Swedish Bioenergy Association (Svebio) since 2008 and chairman of the European Biomass Association (Aebiom) since 2010. Harrison has been involved in the U.K.’s wood energy sector the majority of his career. He cofounded the wood energy company re:heat in 2011, and played a key role in forming the Wood Heat Association. Each has fashioned their career around building a market for biomass heat.
Carrots, Sticks, Tambourines
Egger has worked for the state agency focused on renewable energy and efficiency in Upper Austria since it formed in 1991. She also manages a network within the agency of 170 companies known as the Oekoenergie-Cluster (OEC), and serves as vice president of European Federation of Agencies and Regions for Energy and Environment. Some partners within the OEC are considered pioneers of their trade by atomizing biomass heating in the mid-‘90s. “I was privileged to work with them and help them grow, and they helped create thousands of in-state jobs,” Egger says.
Upper Austria has indeed grown, with biomass heating representing more than 40 percent of the market and around 50,000 automatic biomass systems installed. Additionally, the number of OEC partners has doubled since 2000, with combined revenue jumping ten-fold to $2.5 billion.
Now one of the leaders in biomass heat, Upper Austria’s first use of biomass dates back to the early ‘80s, driven by farmers and forest owners searching for new sources of revenue and markets for forestry residues. A cooperative business model emerged where both groups develop, build and operate small-scale biomass district heating systems, of which Upper Austria now has about 330.
In addition to biomass heating system entrepreneurs and forward-thinking farmers and forest owners, another driving force for biomass is supportive state policies. Egger’s agency develops and promotes policy, supports legislation, and targets the entire industry with awareness campaigns, the World Sustainable Energy Days, training through their Energy Academy and independent technical advice, among other services. The combined success of these initiatives can be summed up as a three-pillar energy strategy of carrots, sticks and tambourines. The energy agency adopted a cartoon to depict the strategy, with a donkey representing the market, stubborn and not inclined to change. However, once the sticks (regulatory measures), the carrots (financial measures) and tambourines (information and training) are applied, a successful policy package is created to stimulate market demand and support supply. “We need this combination of these three things, and we need them at the same time,” Egger says.
Building upon the success of its policies, the state has set a target to meet 100 percent of its electricity and space-heat demand with renewable energy sources by 2030. Egger hopes to see this through before she retires. “Part of my work is also to share this at the European level,” she says. “In Europe, we also have some very good initiatives around renewables and energy efficiency, so there is a role that we have in this process by being the pioneers.”
Polluters Pay Principle
Sweden began pioneering a market for biomass heat around the same time as Austria, with just as much success. One of the main reasons for the sector’s growth, besides its expansive forest industry, is the broad political support and incentives pushed forward by companies like Svebio, which represents about 250 member companies. Melin spends most of his professional time in his role as CEO of Svebio, but also serves as chairman of AEBIOM. “I actually have a very nice combination between business and policy in the positions that I have,” he says.
In 2014, 34.3 percent of energy use in Sweden came from bioenergy. This continual increase over the past 30 years, is partly due to the polluter pays principle (PPP), which means those who are responsible for an emission should pay for polluting. Aligned with this principle, a CO2 tax was introduced in 1991. “It’s so much easier to fee the problem, because then you include it in the market economy,” Melin says.
It’s no surprise Melin ended up in the roles he serves now, with his interest early on in growing and cultivating wildlife and forestry. He was growing vegetables at the age of 12, he says, an interest that led him to study agriculture in Sweden. For a time, Melin developed plant material and machinery for short rotation coppice willows as CEO of Agrobränsle AB, and he currently serves as director of the board in European Willow Breeding AB. Continuing his work with biomass, Melin had a short stint trading pellets as business area manager at TallOil AB in Stockholm.
Melin uses those experiences in his position of CEO of Sveibo, which he assumed after 12 years on the board. Melin references Sweden’s allemansrätten, or “the everyman's right” to describe the country’s forestry mindset. Essentially, everyone should have the right to roam, but with it comes an equal emphasis upon the responsibility to not disturb the countryside. Although Melin believes nature should be preserved, he also believes its preservation can be maintained by using the land’s resources in a sustainable and cost-efficient way. Mirroring Melin’s stance is a campaign called Biomass Counts, launched by AEBIOM in December. The campaign seeks to balance the current debates on biomass by showcasing the reasons sustainable biomass counts in the EU policy debate.
Biomass Heat Gold Rush
Across the North Sea in Northumberland, England, Harrison’s view on the allemansrätten altered as he moved away from nature conservation to the forestry and wood energy sector in 2003. “I gradually got fed up with the whole ‘let’s just pickle nature’ angle,” he remarks.
Even though Harrison became disenchanted with the conservation movement, he still enjoys being outdoors with his children and sprocker spaniel Tess. Northumberland County holds a history in industrial energy and innovation and according to Harrison, has been able to preserve its independence and, identity. “We haven’t been starbuckified yet,” he chuckles.
Although Harrison began his career in biomass heat slightly later than Egger and Melin, it too, began around the same time his country’s industry started emerging. Harrison estimates the U.K. thermal industry to be about 15 to 20 years behind the Austrians and Swedes, but now with the renewable heat incentive (RHI) a gold rush for biomass heat has ensued. Across the U.K., over 9,000 new nondomestic systems have been registered since November 2011. Among all other technology covered under the RHI, solid biomass is in the lead by a huge margin at a ratio of 20-to-1.
The RHI provides fixed subsidies per kilowatt hour (kWh) of heat produced, and to date most of its tariff payments have been to sub-200 kW boilers. The busy traffic with these boilers has resulted in aggressively reduced tariffs. Because of this, Harrison sees the biggest opportunity for biomass heat in the industrial market going forward. He says near-perfect-storm conditions exist, notwithstanding current oil prices. A massive investment in pellet infrastructure to serve the U.K. power station market and a mature industrial base are two of the conditions. “I’d just like to keep driving this industry forward,” Harrison says. “Its potential is enormous in the U.K. and I think we’ve only just scratched the surface thus far.”
Before Harrison and business partner Ben Tansey cofounded re:heat in 2011, they worked together in the forest service, and developed the Ignite training program, the first formal training course in the wood heat sector. For the next few years Harrison occupied his time in New Zealand working for Living Energy. He helped pioneer the industry there by installing the first six woodchip boilers outside the timber processing sector, and helped provide the foundation for Living Energy to become the market leader in Australia. Soon after, Harrison worked for a few years as senior biomass consultant with the Scottish Agricultural College.
Now, Harrison spends much of his time consulting, which he says has unfortunately become a lot of remedial work. Paucity of standards, regulation and appropriate training have led to a number of suboptimal installations. “You have to start with standards, then you need the skilled individuals that deliver against those standards,” Harrison says.
He is passionate about professionalizing the industry, and believes the WHA will help. “WHA was really a response to the lack of representation for the sector and the desire to actually create a sector that you can call an industry, not just a whole set of disparate business and individuals,” Harrison says.
Egger, Melin and Harrison have all helped an industry for biomass heat evolve in their respective countries, creating models for the rest of the world to emulate. Other countries, particularly in Europe, have made considerable advances as well, but the U.S. lags behind. All three believe the U.S. has potential, but battling external impacts like the price of oil and obtaining political support will take time. Maintaining the same level of political support is a challenge even in Europe. It keeps these three biomass heat frontrunners busy ensuring standards are set and proper training is in place, as they manage their growing companies dedicated to championing the benefits bioenergy has to offer.
Author: Katie Fletcher
Staff Writer, Biomass Magazine
701-738-4920
kfletcher@bbiinternational.com
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement