Bioenergy in Scotland (with thanks to SRF for this material)
INTRODUCTION
Bioenergy is derived from burning organic materials, such as wood, grasses or animal wastes, to produce heat and power or to be converted into biofuels. A range of woody biomass is available in the UK, including forestry residues, sawmill products, fast-growing crops, and untreated wood from the furniture, packing and construction industries. Biomass also includes biodegradable residues from the agricultural, municipal and industrial sectors.
Biomass can be converted into energy in the form of electricity, heat or combined heat and power (CHP) by simple combustion, by co-firing with other fuels or through intermediate processes, such as gasification. Heat and CHP generation carry the highest conversion efficiencies, up to 85%, in contrast to around 30% for electricity-only generation. Scotland has great potential to develop a highly successful biomass industry due to its considerable, and growing, forestry resource. Wood fuel is carbon neutral and so can displace the harmful effects of burning fossil fuels on the atmosphere and contribute to renewable energy targets. It also provides job creation and diversification opportunities.
ELECTRICITY AND HEAT GENERATION
The Form for Renewable Energy Development in Scotland (FREDS) concluded that a biomass industry in Scotland has the potential to supply 450MW of electricity from the wood fuel resource by 2020 while employing over 2,000 people. Such development is crucial to helping Scotland meet the Scottish Executive's target of generating 40% electricity from renewables by 2020. Co-firing with coal in existing power stations results in a reduction in carbon emissions and utilises the existing infrastructure, while stimulating supply chains for biomass materials. However, electricity is responsible for only 15-20% of our energy use - heating and transpower both represent larger demands. Action is therefore needed to reduce the carbon content of these components and bioenergy can play a key role in this.
Biomass fuelled heat-only applications are most competitive when replacing oil, LPG and electric heating, which makes wood fuel boilers particularly well suited to rural areas without access to the mains gas network. The viability of mid - to large-scale heat and CHP schemes relies on a market for the heat output, usually be being linked to a building, factory or heat distribution network. Positive planning policies should require new developments to include district heating and CHP whenvever it is feasible.
BIOMASS DEVELOPMENT
There is currently only one large-scale grid-connected biomass project operating in Scotland - the 12MW Westfield plant in Fife uses a combustion system to burn poultry litter to generate electricity and produce fertiliser. However, E.ON's $$MW biomass electricity plant in Lockerbie is due to be commissioned by the end of 2007 and there are other industry sites with plans to deliver heat/electricity generated from biomass. There are also numerous community and domestic scale heat-only projects currently operating around Scotland. The Scottish Executive's Scottish Biomass Support Scheme (SBSS), announced in March 2007, is providing a boost for a further 71 projects which are to benefit from support totalling £10.5 million.
BARRIERS TO DEVELOPMENT
There are clearly opportunities for the development of small and large-scale biomass schemes, however, growth is currently hampered by various barriers. Specifically:
- policy emphasis to date by the Scottish Executive and UK Government on renewable electricity
- inadequate long-term support mechanisms for bioenergy schemes
- challenges associated with planning consents and grid connections
- supply chain issues, and
- uncertainty over the regulatory procedures regarding the definition of waster.
Currently, sawmill co-products and forestry residues which have a market are not classified as waste, however, there is uncertainty over the definition of other potential biomass materials which, if classified as 'waste', would incur additional costs. Scottish Renewables is keen that the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) works closely with industry to develop a thorough understanding of the scope of biomass activities and that there be clear guidance to ensure that biomass development is not unnecessarily hindered by procedural issues.
SUPPORT FOR ENERGY
Scottish Renewables works closely with Scottish Executive on appropriate support mechanisms for bioenergy projects. The Biomass Action Plan (March 2007), aims to ensure that Scotland's biomass resource is properly supported and we will be continuing to work with the Executive to ensure delivery of the Plan's objectives; we will also be monitoring implementation of the SBSS. In addition, we are contributing to discussions on the Executive's plan to produce a Renewable Heat Strategy by the end of 2007, and will be pursuing opportunities for the introduction of a workable support mechanism to promote the use of biomass heat, alongside other renewable heat technologies.
In co-operating with the Confederation of Forest Industries (ConFor), Scottish Renewables co-ordinates the Bioenergy Network, which links all relevant organisations and stakeholders within the Scottish biomass industry. The Network hosts an annual Bioenergy seminar and distributes regular e-bulletins to stakeholders.
