Biomethane: Local Energy Carrier or European Commodity?

Horschig, Thomas; Billig, Eric; Majer, Stefan; Thrän, Daniela

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-03374-3_31

Cited by 4 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 4 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…An overview on the current situation of biogas in Europe and perspectives is given by Scarlat [6]. The status of biomethane in Europe has recently been published by Horschig et al [7]. The production and utilization of biogas in Europe and thus in each country are governed by a variety of frameworks, either as part of a sector (i.e., agricultural sector) or for biogas specifically.…”

Section: Open Accessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stakeholder perceptions about sustainability governance in the German biogas sector

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Since the steady growth of the German biogas sector, its sustainability is subject to constant scrutiny, especially economic and environmental sustainability. Public concerns about sustainability of biogas started with the issue of energy crop cultivation in the 2010s. To steer sustainability in the biogas sector, a broad variety of regulations and acts were enacted, mainly via top-down legislation making. But in order to govern sustainability in every step of the value chain, involvement of numerous stakeholders in the biogas sector is necessary. This paper will address the question: What are the perceptions of the relevant stakeholders in the biogas sector regarding various sustainability issues and what are their expectations? Methods Following an instrumental approach, three steps were initially undertaken for the systematic analysis of the stakeholder landscape, namely (1) stakeholder identification, (2) stakeholder categorization, and (3) investigation of stakeholder relationships. In addition, a theoretical mapping was performed to identify those actors, who most likely impact the implementation of biogas value chains, or are strongly affected by this implementation. These were then subject to surveys via questionnaires and semi-structured interviews to gather information on their sustainability governance perception. Results Results indicate that key players are farmers and biogas associations due to anchoring in agricultural sector, along with environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and policy makers. Furthermore, the surveyed stakeholders agree on regulating sustainability at national level, while tending toward neutral or even disagreeing for the regulation of sustainability at local and international level. They also agree that certification and standards can be an effective tool for compliant sustainability governance. Conclusions This study revealed a clear expectation gap regarding the transfer of the current energy legislation in a bio-economy and how sustainability shall be steered then (mandatory/voluntary and local (national) level/international level). The surveyed stakeholders expect transparent and clear rules from the government to steer sustainability that they currently do not perceive with regard to the expectation gap. In order to integrate the different stakeholders in the bio-economy development instead of confronting them with opaque legislation making, it is important to clearly communicate not only the opportunities but also the requirements that come along with the implementation of a bio-economy.

show abstract

Section: Open Accessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stakeholder perceptions about sustainability governance in the German biogas sector

et al. 2020

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…EU regulations are binding as well as generally and directly applied in all member countries, whereas EU directives are binding for the objective to be achieved, without defining the exact measures [63]. The observed differences investigated in [4,58,[64][65][66][67] can be summarized as follows:…”

Section: European Biomethane Market and Legislationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Requirements for a sustainable feedstock basis A sustainable feedstock basis in combination with cross-border trade of biomethane is probably realisable via certification schemes after market-build up [65]. Activities regarding this issue are part of the upcoming RED II.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Biogas Upgrading: A Review of National Biomethane Strategies and Support Policies in Selected Countries

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Bioenergy contributes significantly towards the share of renewable energies, in Europe and worldwide. Besides solid and liquid biofuels, gaseous biofuels, such as biogas or upgraded biogas (biomethane), are an established renewable fuel in Europe. Although many studies consider biomethane technologies, feedstock potentials, or sustainability issues, the literature on the required legislative framework for market introduction is limited. Therefore, this research aims at identifying the market and legislative framework conditions in the three leading biomethane markets in Europe and compare them to the framework conditions of the top six non-European biomethane markets. This study shows the global status and national differences in promoting this renewable energy carrier. For the cross-country comparison, a systematic and iterative literature review is conducted. The results show the top three European biomethane markets (Germany, United Kingdom, Sweden) and the six non-European biomethane markets (Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, South Korea, and the United States of America), pursuing different promotion approaches and framework conditions. Noteworthy cross-national findings are the role of state-level incentives, the tendency to utilise biomethane as vehicular fuel and the focus on residues and waste as feedstock for biomethane production. Presenting a cross-country comparison, this study supports cross-country learning for the promotion of renewable energies like biomethane and gives a pertinent overview of the work.

show abstract

“…The law was renamed in the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) in 2000 and amended many times in the coming years. It has become the key element of the bioenergy boom in the German power sector . The motivation for the expansion of bioenergy was manifold.…”

Section: From 1990 To the 2010s The German Bioenergy Boommentioning

confidence: 99%

One Century of Bioenergy in Germany: Wildcard and Advanced Technology

Pfeiffer

Thrän

2018

Chemie Ingenieur Technik

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Bioenergy is the oldest renewable energy resource and has a long tradition in heat provision. However, with the establishment of the chemical industry and engineering the application field as extended to the power and the transport sector. This article outlines the development of power and fuel production from biomass over a period of hundred years until today, as well as future prospects. The crucial technical innovations of bioenergy with regard to political and historical events are reflected. Despite of improvements in the last decades, mainly associated with issues like resource availability, technical efficiency or emission mitigation, the future energy supply by biomass has to be even more efficient, demand‐oriented and integrated step‐by‐step in a more renewable energy system.

show abstract

Biomethane: Local Energy Carrier or European Commodity?

Cited by 4 publications

References 4 publications

Stakeholder perceptions about sustainability governance in the German biogas sector

Stakeholder perceptions about sustainability governance in the German biogas sector

Biogas Upgrading: A Review of National Biomethane Strategies and Support Policies in Selected Countries

One Century of Bioenergy in Germany: Wildcard and Advanced Technology

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About