Solid
biomass in Denmark
General
The importance of energy independence in Denmark is
underlined in the government plan ‘A Visionary Danish Energy Policy’ (January
2007) in which also the importance of renewable energy sources is stressed. Denmark
is known for its high penetration rates of wind power in the electricity
systems, that locally may result in overcapacity during certain time-frames. Heat
supply through distribution networks is common practice in Denmark.
The
major developments of the district heat sector took place in the 1980s
and
1990s, focusing on cogeneration of electricity and heat. According to
the present policy Denmark should have at least 30% energy supply from
renewable energy in 2025, which corresponds to a wind power production
of around 50% of electricity consumption.
According to the Directive
2009/28/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the promotion of the
use of energy from renewable sources the target for the share of energy from
renewable sources in gross final consumption of energy in the year 2020 for
Denmark is 30% (in the year 2005 the share was 17.0%). The Directive has a
mandatory 10 % target for transport to be achieved by all Member States, which
refers to renewable sources as a whole, not biofuels alone.
Renewable energy projections according to the National Renewable Energy Action Plan for Denmark
The
National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) for Denmark was submitted
in July 2010. The target according to Annex I of Directive 2009/28/EC
is 30% for the year 2020 and the projected NREAP share in that year
exactly matches the target. According to the projection, the most
important contribution in the year 2020 is expected from biomass
(renewable heating and cooling) (2643 ktoe, 54% of all renewable
energy). Second important contribution is expected from wind power
(11.7 TWh or 1007 ktoe, 20% of all renewable energy). The third largest
contribution is from biomass (renewable electricity) (8.8 TWh or 761
ktoe, 15% of all renewable energy). Wind power contributes with 4.0 GW
(11.7 TWh) in the year 2020 (onshore wind 2.6 GW and 6.4 TWh, offshore
wind 1.3 GW and 5.3 TWh). For solar photovoltaic the 2020 contribution
is projected to be 0.0 GW (0.0 TWh). For solar thermal the 2020
contribution is projected to be 16 ktoe. The two most important
biofuels are projected to contribute 167 ktoe (biodiesel) and 94 ktoe
(bioethanol / bio-ETBE) by 2020. The renewable electricity production
from solid biomass amounts to 6.3 TWh (546 ktoe) and for biogas it is
expected to be 2.5 TWh (214 ktoe). The consumption of renewable heat is
expected to amount to 2470 ktoe for solid biomass and 165 ktoe for
biogas. Renewable electricity and heat : solid biomass
Denmark
promotes the generation of electricity from renewable sources through a
price regulation, according to the "Law on the promotion of renewable
energy, 27 December 2008". System operators receive a variable bonus on
top of the market price. The sum of the bonus and the market price
shall not exceed a certain statutory maximum, which depends on the date
of connection of the system and the source of energy used. In certain
cases, system operators are granted a guaranteed bonus and are thus not
subject to a statutory maximum. If the market price exceeds the total
amount specified by statutory law, the exceeding amount will be
deducted from future bonus payments. The period of payment is usually
10 years. The maximum period of payment is 20 years. The costs of the
promotion system are borne by the consumers.
For electricity produced through the use of biogas, gasification gas produced from biomass, and stirling engines, the bonus together with the market price will
ensure a tariff of DKK
0.745 per kWh. For electricity produced from the use of
above-mentioned energy sources together with other fuels, a bonus
of DKK 0.405 per kWh shall be granted for the share of electricity
produced through above-mentioned energy sources. The sum of bonus and
the market price shall be index-adjusted on 1 January annually from
2009 on the basis of 60% of increases in the net price index in the
previous calendar year in relation to 2007.
For electricity
produced by combustion of biomass a bonus of DKK 0.15 per kWh
shall be granted regardless of whether the electricity is produced by
plants that only use biomass, or by installations where biomass is used
with other fuels.
Future
programme changes expected
No information on future policy.
Sources
Danish Energy
Agency, http://www.ens.dk (sourced October 2009)
Directive 2009/28/EC of the European Parliament
and of the Council of 23 April 2009 on the promotion of the use of energy from
renewable sources, http://ec.europa.eu/energy/renewables/transparency_platform_en.htmLegal sources on renewable energy: http://res-legal.eu (sourced October 2009)
The National Renewable Energy Action Plans (NREAPs) are all published on the Transparency Platform on Renewable Energy: http://ec.europa.eu/energy/renewables/transparency_platform/action_plan_en.htm (sourced July - December 2010)
Renewable Energy Projections as Published in the National Renewable Energy Action Plans of the European Member States, http://www.ecn.nl/nreap (sourced December 2010)
Interactive EurObserv’ER Database
http://www.eurobserv-er.org
Last update: December 2010
This information can be referenced without permission provided that the
source is mentioned completely and correctly: 'Interactive EurObserv'ER
Database, http://www.eurobserv-er.org (date of last update)'
Suggestions for improvements to the policy description can be sent to EurObserv'ER by e-mail: project@eurobserv-er.org
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