How to decarbonize the natural gas sector: A dynamic simulation approach for the market development estimation of renewable gas in Germany

Horschig, Thomas; Adams, Paul W.; Gawel, Erik; Thrän, Daniela

doi:10.1016/j.apenergy.2017.11.016

Cited by 34 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 43 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…With production costs for sustainable biomethane expected at a level of 46-94 €/MWh, production cost for renewable hydrogen at a level of 52-75 €/MWh, and the corresponding costs for synthetic renewable methane at a level of 100-150 €/MWh, they all lie substantially above the currently observed average European wholesale price for natural gas (around 20 €/MWh) [98]. If the gas price stays at this level and as long as there is no comprehensive carbon pricing regime, rational economic decisions to invest in major additional renewable gas production can only be expected if backed by effective support to compensate for the premium over the natural gas wholesale price [9,99,100]. We empirically examined one such support scheme (see "Enabling factors for gas sector contributions to a future EU energy system" section for description and "Enabling factors" section for discussion).…”

Section: Micro-economic Conditions For Renewable Gas Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As outlined above, renewable gases can largely be supplied through existing network and storage infrastructure. Massive expansion will be required in renewable gas production, and this Table 5 Overview of production cost estimates for renewable gases (based on [7-9, 11, 12, 52, 60, 83, 95, 110] hinges on sufficient financial support [10,99]. This is a situation we observe not only in renewable gas but for the broad majority of renewable energy generation technologies and approaches [13,78].…”

Section: Micro-economic Conditions For Renewable Gas Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to the need for a support scheme to improve the business case of renewable gas production for operators and investors [9,99,100], our empirical work with focus on the Austrian case delivered a somewhat broader picture of factors for enabling gas sector contributions in an efficient and sustainable way. While these different elements might not be fully applicable or relevant in other EU member states and specific national characteristics could lead to different conclusions, we Fig.…”

Section: Enabling Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

How and to which extent can the gas sector contribute to a climate-neutral European energy system? A qualitative approach

Lebelhuber

Steinmüller

2019

Energ Sustain Soc

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Mitigating climate change requires fundamentally redesigned energy systems in which renewable energy sources ultimately replace fossil fuels such as natural gas. In this context, the question how and to which extent the gas sector can contribute to an increasingly climate-neutral future EU energy system is heavily debated among scholars, energy industry experts, and policy makers. Methods: We take a two-step approach: we begin with a review of studies from energy industry and academia to discuss potential gas sector contributions from a holistic energy system design point of view; this is followed by a comprehensive discussion of technical potentials, micro-economic conditions, and societal implications of renewable gas. We then enrich our findings with the results of an empirical focus group process. Results: The gas sector can not only contribute to balancing volatile renewable energy production but also enable the supply of renewable energy to end-users in gaseous form; based on existing infrastructure. This could reduce costs for society, increase public acceptance, and ultimately speed up the energy system transformation. There is the theoretical technical potential to substitute major parts of natural gas with renewable gas of biogenic and synthetic nature. This, however, crucially requires a supportive policy framework like the one established for renewable electricity. Conclusion: Given the societal benefits and the competitiveness of renewable gas as compared to renewable alternatives, energy policy makers should incorporate renewable gas and the existing gas infrastructure in the future energy system framework. The objective should be an optimized interplay of various energy vectors and their infrastructure along the entire energy supply chain. This requires a level playing field for different renewable technologies across different policy areas and a form of public support that strikes the balance between facilitating the gradual substitution of natural gas by renewable gas while maintaining public acceptance for this transformation despite higher costs for end-users.

show abstract

Section: Micro-economic Conditions For Renewable Gas Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Micro-economic Conditions For Renewable Gas Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Enabling Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

How and to which extent can the gas sector contribute to a climate-neutral European energy system? A qualitative approach

Lebelhuber

Steinmüller

2019

Energ Sustain Soc

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Required, however, will be a massive scale-up of renewable gas production. Prerequisite for that are sufficient support levels [16,101]. This, however, is not limited to renewable gas, but applicable for the entire field of different renewable energy generation technologies and approaches in general [25,62].…”

Section: Micro-economic Conditions For Renewable Gas Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to the already discussed need for a support scheme to improve the business case of renewable gas production for operators and investors [15,101,102], our empirical work with focus on the Austrian case delivered a somewhat broader picture of enabling factors to unlock gas sector contributions in an efficient and sustainable way. While these different elements might not be fully applicable or relevant in other EU member states and national specifics could lead to partly different conclusions, we believe some central observations addressed in the following are considered to have general validity.…”

Section: Enabling Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

How and to which extent can the gas sector contribute to a climate-neutral European energy system? A qualitative approach.

Lebelhuber

Steinmüller

2019

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Mitigating climate change requires fundamentally redesigned energy systems where renewable energy sources ultimately replace fossil fuels such as natural gas. In this context, the question how and to which extent the gas sector can contribute to an increasingly climate-neutral future EU energy system is heavily debated among scholars, energy industry experts and policymakers. Methods: We take a two-step approach: We begin with a review of studies from energy industry and academia to discuss potential gas sector contributions from a holistic energy system design point of view; this is followed by a comprehensive discussion of technical potentials, micro-economic conditions and societal implications of renewable gas. We then enrich our findings with the results of an empirical focus group process. Results: The gas sector may not only contribute to balancing volatile renewable energy production but also enable the supply of renewable energy to end-users in gaseous form; based on existing infrastructure. This could reduce costs for society, increase public acceptance and ultimately speed up the energy system transformation. There is the technical potential to substitute major parts of natural gas with renewable gas of biogenic and synthetic nature. While this will require public support, we observe this requirement in a comparable magnitude also for renewable electricity. Conclusion: Given the societal benefits and the competitiveness of renewable gas as compared to renewable alternatives, energy policymakers should incorporate renewable gas and the existing gas infrastructure in the overall energy system framework. The objective should be an optimized interplay of various energy vectors and its infrastructure along the entire energy supply chain. This requires a level playing field for different renewable technologies throughout different policy areas and a form of public support that strikes the balance between facilitating the gradual substitution of natural gas by renewable gas while maintaining public acceptance for this transformation despite realistically higher costs for end-users.

show abstract

Potential and Opportunities of Waste Biomass Valorization Toward Sustainable Biomethane Production

Selvasembian

2024

ChemBioEng Reviews

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The increasing global population has led to a surge in waste production across various fields including agriculture, industry, marine, and household, posing significant waste management challenges. Concurrently, the world is facing an energy crisis, emphasizing the crucial need for sustainable and renewable energy sources. This comprehensive review examines the potential of biomethane production from diverse waste biomass. Feedstock characteristics; anaerobic digestion (AD); biochemical pathways; factors influencing AD; various pretreatment methods such as physical, chemical, biological, and combined; existing policies supporting biomethane production; and potential new policy implications are discussed in this review along with the significance of waste‐to‐energy integration. Our findings indicate that lignocellulosic wastes, primarily agricultural waste, stand out as the most efficient biomass source for biomethane production due to their characteristics such as high carbon/nitrogen ratio, low ash content, and their abundant availability. Among pretreatment methods, combined pretreatment emerges as the most promising option, offering flexibility and effectiveness in enhancing biomethane production. Additionally, the two‐stage digester configuration proves advantageous in overcoming limitations associated with single‐stage digesters such as pH inhibition. Altogether, the review highlights that biomethane production from waste biomass through AD offers a sustainable solution.

show abstract

How to decarbonize the natural gas sector: A dynamic simulation approach for the market development estimation of renewable gas in Germany

Cited by 34 publications

References 43 publications

How and to which extent can the gas sector contribute to a climate-neutral European energy system? A qualitative approach

How and to which extent can the gas sector contribute to a climate-neutral European energy system? A qualitative approach

How and to which extent can the gas sector contribute to a climate-neutral European energy system? A qualitative approach.

Potential and Opportunities of Waste Biomass Valorization Toward Sustainable Biomethane Production

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About