COMMENT/IN THIS ISSUE INDUSTRY NEWS Editorial comment A
t a time when the United Kingdom has just left the starting grid in a race to determine whether it remains as part of the European Union or votes for a ‘Brexit’, the European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to assess whether the country’s plans to support the conversion of part of the coal-fired Drax Power Station in Selby, North Yorkshire, to operate on biomass are in line with EU state aid rules.
The Commission fully supports Member State efforts to increase the use of renewable energy and pursue EU energy and climate objectives. At the same time, EU state aid rules make sure that the cost of such support for consumers is limited and does not give certain operators an unfair advantage over competitors. Therefore, the Commission will now investigate further to make sure that the public funds used to sup- port the Drax project are limited to what is necessary and do not result in over-compensation.
In April, 2015, the UK announced that it intended to subsidise the conversion of one unit of the coal-fired Drax power plant to operate entirely on biomass. The unit involved in this measure would have the capacity to generate 645 MW of renewable electricity running exclusively on wood pellets. The measure fixes a ‘strike price’ for the electricity generated. If the average wholesale price of electricity falls below this price, Drax would receive an additional payment on top of the money it earns from selling its electricity into the market. According to UK estimates, the project would operate until 2027 and supply about 3.6 TWh of electricity per year. The plant would require approximately 2.4 million tonnes of wood pellets per year, mainly sourced from the US and South America.
Compared to the total volume of the global wood pellets market, the amount of pellets required is considerable and demand from the Drax conversion project could significantly distort competition in the biomass market. The Commission is therefore also concerned that – on balance – the measure’s negative effects on competition could outweigh its positive effect on achieving EU 2020 targets for renewable energy. It intends to investigate further to see if its concerns are justified.
David Young Editor
FOREST BIOENERGY REVIEW Volume 6, Number 29 - Spring 2016 Contact information
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12 EQUIPMENT REVIEW
Introducing new equipment and services PREVIEW
International Wood Biorefining Week EVENTS Conferences and exhibitions past and future
Front cover: Safety footware is essential for protection when using tools such as chainsaws (picture © Crown Copyright courtesy of the Forestry Commission) – see page 8.
Spring 2016 1 1 16 13 14
In this issue INDUSTRY NEWS
What’s happening in the world of forest bioenergy? AEBIOM
SAFETY FOOTWARE Boots to protect forest workers
5 New Renewable Energy Directive: regaining EU global leadership 6
2
6
Certification for owners of small woodlands WOOD FUEL MATERIALS
Real time measurement of moisture in biomass BIOFUELS
FOREST-BASED BIOPRODUCTS
Jet fuel from forest residues FOREST MACHINES
More efficient forwarders shrink the market 8 10 11 12
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