Navigating bioenergy horizons: a critical examination of Europe’s potential, with Belgium as a case study
(2024) Sustainable Energy Research — Vol. 11, n° 1, p. 1-20 (2024)
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- Abstract
- Estimates of the energy potential of the different energy sources are essential for modelling energy systems. However,the potential of biomass is debatable due to the numerous dimensions and assumptions embedded. It is thus impor-tant to investigate further the final potential to understand their implications. Therefore, this study analyses Europeanstudies assessing biomass potential and proposes a critical discussion on the different results to converge to a realisticrange of potentials for 2030. Biomass is divided into four categories: forestry products, agricultural residues, energycrops and other waste, each with sub-categories. Belgium is used as a case study to highlight the convergencesand divergences of the studies. Having a national case study allows for more precise analyses through in-depth com-parisons with national data and reports. The potential estimates are compared with the current production for eachcategory in order to have a better view of the gap to be bridged. From these national perspectives, the Europeanpotential can be better apprehended. The results show that the realistic potentials for 2030 for Belgium and Europeare somewhat in the lower range of the estimates of the different studies: from 30 to 41 TWh and from 2000to 2500 TWh, respectively. The forestry biomass is already well exploited with a slight potential increase, while the agri-cultural residues present the most significant potential increase. The realistic potential for energy crops in Belgiumturned out to be close to the minimum estimates. Indeed, the implications of those crops are considerable regard-ing the agricultural structure and logistics. This article emphasises that no energy potential is neutral, as it involvesa specific system in terms of agriculture, forestry or waste management, with broader social, economic or environ-mental implications. Consequently, using one estimate rather than another is not a trivial matter; it has an impacton the system being modelled from the outset.
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Citations
Colla, M., Verleysen, K., Blondeau, J., & Jeanmart, H. (2024). Navigating bioenergy horizons: a critical examination of Europe’s potential, with Belgium as a case study. Sustainable Energy Research, 11(1), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40807-024-00108-0 (Original work published 2024)