Industry News


UPM Biofuels welcomes new EU Renewable Energy Directive REDII


E


uropean institutions have agreed on the Renewable Energy Directive REDII for the 2020s after the European


Council adopted the agreement made earlier this summer. UPM welcomes the agreement that will increase the use of renewable energy to 32% in 2030 and requires 14% bioenergy to be used in transport. All the EU member states are


obliged to implement a binding advanced biofuel blending mandate starting 2022. UPM Biofuels is one of the front- runners in the advanced biofuels industry. The UPM Lappeenranta Biorefinery, the world’s first to produce wood-based renewable diesel and naphtha on a commercial scale, has proven the potential as a significant producer of truly sustainable advanced biofuels. UPM BioVerno, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions by over 80% compared with fossil fuels, has found a solid marketplace.


“UPM welcomes this agreement as


it will further boost interest in the most sustainable biofuels and strengthens the position of advanced low-ILUC fuels. UPM BioVerno renewable diesel and naphtha are not competing with the food chain - and they are uniquely certified as having minimal risk of causing indirect emissions or land use change. Thus they are perfect for replacing fossil materials,” says


Sari Mannonen, Vice President, UPM Biofuels. “Advanced biofuels are now


definitely recognized as a fast- track route to decarbonisation of transport across the EU. Furthermore, the recently published IPCC report highlighted the urgency of decarbonisation actions. We are pleased with the fact that an increasing number of countries are


identifying ways to reduce transport emissions and looking at boosting the uptake of advanced biofuels. Sustainable biofuels play an important role in achieving the Paris Agreement targets,” says Marko Janhunen, Director, Public Affairs, UPM. For further information contact: UPM, Media Relations tel. +358 40 588 3284 media@upm.com


Biomass potential key to climate change


Ahead of COP24, review of current data on biomass potential confirms bioenergy is a key solution for climate change mitigation. The amount of domestically


available biomass used for bioenergy in Europe can triplicate within sustainable and environmental limits and at a reasonable cost, according to recently published research. As attention focuses on the


urgency of fighting climate change at the COP24 meeting beginning this week, the research confirms what has just been highlighted in the EU’s new long-term strategy for decarbonization: biomass has a prominent role to play in a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions economy. Bioenergy represents one of the


most important solutions to achieve a balance between emissions and removals by 2050. Versatile and flexible, bioenergy can help


drastically cut carbon emissions throughout different sectors: transport, heating and electricity production. The availability of sustainable biomass is a decisive factor to determine the contribution of bioenergy to the 2050 energy mix. Agricultural biomass plays a central role in the research, which was conducted by Prof. Dr. André Faaij of the University of Groningen. To achieve the potential by 2050, the energy contribution of agricultural biomass will need to increase significantly and become at least as important as that of energy from forest biomass. Based on the findings of the


literature review, Bioenergy Europe calls upon the parties of the Paris Agreement to emphasise the synergies between the use of different types of bioenergy, climate adaptation measures,


environmental protection and the deployment of a wider bio-economy


in the conclusions of the COP24 talks.


Spring 2019 Forest Bioenergy Review 7


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