bioenergy

In bioenergy, it's often difficult to see the forest through the trees. The many articles about 'truths' and 'myths' do not really help.

Meanwhile, biofuels are currently produced in volumes where they start to make a real contribution to energy security. An ethanol boom in the USA has led to a production of 16 million cubic meters, primarily based on corn. Brazil has a longer tradition and currently produces 15 million cubic meters of ethanol, using sugarcane. In Europe, Germany is leading with a 2 million m3 production of biodiesel in 2005.

Production cost for bioethanol has come down to 0.15 - 0.18 euro/liter (with one liter of ethanol equivalent to 0.67 l of gasoline in terms of energy content).

Are biofuels sustainable? Well, they are definitely not energy or CO2 neutral. The ethanol production process is energy intensive, consuming almost as much energy as it produces. Depending on the carbon emissions of energy used in production, the net CO2 effect can be a fine balance, rising a lot of debate.

By Eike Roth

In partnership with Energie-Fakten

Read as pdf

Today, land is used for living, working, recreation and most importantly, food production. A relatively new use is growing biomass for energy use, which requires vast areas of land because of the diffuse nature of sunlight, and the low efficiency of plants capturing it. There is a direct competition for agricultural land between energy and food. Land requirements for both uses depend on consumption and production per square meter, 2 parameters which vary widely. In this paper, S Nonhebel estimates land requirements based on today's consumption patterns and production efficiency, providing a basis for the construction of scenario's.

By Eike Roth

In partnership with Energie-Fakten