A joint statement by IRENA and international partners highlights bioenergy’s crucial role in the fight against climate change. By decarbonizing tough sectors, supporting renewables, and enhancing energy resilience, bioenergy is key to limit global warming. Beyond its role in achieving climate goals, bioenergy supports development goals by boosting energy security, rural development, job creation, and poverty eradication. 

To limit global warming to 1.5°C, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) forecasts that bioenergy will have to almost triple its share of the total final energy consumption (TPEC) by 2050, passing from its current 7% to over 18%.

“We must be realistic – our decarbonisation targets cannot be met without sustainable bioenergy, especially in hard-to-abate sectors. We need bioenergy to achieve net zero, and only good governance can ensure its sustainable use and practice.” – declared Roland Roesch, IRENA”s Director for Innovation and Technology Centre.

To raise awareness on sustainable bioenergy’s critical role in the global energy transition, IRENA has issued a joint statement alongside the Clean Energy Ministerial Biofuture Platform Initiative, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the International Energy Agency (IEA), the IEA Bioenergy Technology Collaboration Programme, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, the United Nations Development Programme, and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. The statement was developed by a Cross-Initiative Coordination Group on Bioenergy and convened by the Global Bioenergy Partnership. It seeks to address the persistent debates about what role bioenergy should play in support of climate and development goals.

Denmark’s Energy Transition Journey: Leading Example for a Fossils-Free Future

Yesterday, Bioenergy Europe’s Secretary General, Jean-Marc Jossart, attended the conference “Accélérer la décarbonation et l’efficacité énergétique dans l’industrie” at the Maison du Danemark in Paris. The event, opened by the Danish Ambassador to Paris, provided a valuable opportunity for France and Denmark to learn from each other’s experiences and strategies in the journey toward industrial defossilisation.

Denmark holds a privileged position, having embarked on a successful journey toward energy transition for many years. Today, bioenergy is the cornerstone of Denmark’s energy mix, representing over 75% of the country’s total renewable energy consumption. Through the years, biomass has been crucial in converting coal-fired power plants to cleaner energy sources, using mainly wood chips, pellets and straw. This Danish experience was presented as an example for other EU countries to defossilise their industry and energy systems. 

Panellists also presented France’s plan for a fossils-free industry, introducing the 2015 Stratégie Nationale Bas Carbone (SNBC) as a key moment in this journey. For French industries, the strategy translates into an 81% reduction in emissions by 2050. Currently, the industry accounts for 20% of France’s greenhouse gas emissions, with a goal to reduce these emissions by 50% by 2032. The attendants highlighted that to achieve this, industrial players need work on several fronts, including energy efficiency and replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy sources, such as bioenergy. Industrial players are not left alone in this, as the industrial sector has the possibility to access to several funding opportunities to accelerate the industrial decarbonisation. The BCIAT (Biomass Chaleur pour l’ Industrie, l’Agriculture et le Tertaire) is part of the Heat Fund (Fonds Chaleur) and provides up to 65% support to investment. Projects are selected mainly (70%  of the quote) on the base of the lowest public inventive per ton CO2 saved, what is a very meaningful criteria.

Bioenergy Europe joined one of the opening panels at the conference, discussing the impact of EU legislation and the regulatory landscape on bioenergy and biomass use. The presentation analysed how various EU files affect the sector, with a focus on RED (renewable directive) and CRCF (carbon removal). Additionally, it provided an overview of EU level carbon-neutrality targets, highlighting the critical role of bioenergy in supporting these goals. This included insights from the latest French National Energy and Climate Plan, emphasizing bioenergy’s contribution to achieving national and European decarbonization objectives.

Confirming the Green Deal as Europe’s growth and security engine, providing much needed clarity and stability to industries and citizens.

Bioenergy Europe joined more than 500 cross-sector organisations in urging European Union leaders to prioritise and enhance the EU Green Deal in the upcoming strategic agenda. Together, signatories from across the economy, remind EU leaders that delivering the EU Green Deal is the best strategy for securing Europe’s competitiveness and prosperity, providing much-needed clarity and stability to Europe’s businesses and citizens.

The Green Deal has set the EU on a path to sustainable growth, and has proven to be robust and convincing in challenging times. The continuing Russian aggression in Ukraine, the resulting fossil fuel crisis, as well as the increasingly dire impacts from climate change in Europe, have confirmed the Green Deal as essential to the EU’s security, competitiveness, and social welfare objectives.

This has catapulted Europe into a new paradigm. The energy trilemma of sustainability, affordability, and security of supply now clearly points in one direction: delivering and completing the Green Deal – replacing fossil fuels and shifting to a sustainable, circular and just economy – is essential to all of Europe’s strategic objectives.

According to the IEA, EU electricity consumers saved an estimated EUR 100 billion during 2021-2023 thanks to an acceleration in renewables and electrification. And the world’s clean technology value chains will be worth over €600 billion by 2030. No action on climate change, on the other hand, could lead to a 10% loss in global GDP by mid-century.

The EU Green Deal is the best tool for securing Europe’s prosperity and competitiveness. The undersigned companies and stakeholders, therefore, ask EU leaders to:

1. Confirm the EU Green Deal as a top priority in the next EU Strategic Agenda, and complement it with a Clean Industrial Deal that is in line with the Green Deal objectives
2. Align all EU financial instruments with the Green Deal objectives for 2030 and beyond, including establishing a new Clean Industrial Deal Investment Plan as part of the next EU budget; supporting cities and regions in the transition;
3. Appoint an Executive Vice-President for both the Green and Industrial Deals to ensure both competitiveness and decarbonisation objectives are met in the most efficient way.

We call on EU leaders to use the next 5 years of their mandate to act on its Green Deal commitments. We have 20 seasons to take our fate in hand and advance towards a competitive, secure and democratic Europe.

Time for the next (co)-generation: Bioenergy Europe joins the EHP Congress

Last week, Bioenergy Europe had the chance to attend the 42nd Euroheat and Power Congress in Rotterdam. Over three days of insightful discussions, the forum focused on the future of sustainable heat and the key role of district heating in the energy transition.

Bioenergy is currently the largest source of renewable heat, accounting for 85% of all renewable heat. However, the heating sector, which represents 49% of the EU’s energy consumption, is still largely dependent on fossil fuels. As new solutions emerge the landscape is continually evolving, offering advanced opportunities for clean heat.

Already today, district heating and cooling networks are helping phase out fossil fuels in buildings, aligning the EU with its climate and energy goals. By meeting 20% of the EU’s heat demand through district heating and cooling, the EU could save 24 billion cubic meters of gas by 2030, which is 32% of the EU’s Russian gas imports in 2022. Achieving this target requires substantial investments in new district heating and cooling systems, gradually introduce renewable heat sources and modernise Europe’s district heating and cooling network.

In this context, Bioenergy Europe’s Senior Policy Officer Daniel Reinemann participated in the panel “Time for the Next (Co) Generation!” Panelists highlighted that high-efficiency cogeneration is crucial for district heating. However, Bioenergy Europe emphasized that biomass cogeneration is essential for a cleaner and more innovative approach, that also enhances the EU’s energy security. This was a great chance to stress the role of bioenergy CHP (Combined Heat and Power) and the wider role of bioenergy in the energy mix.