Tag Archives: alternative
Pellet Consumption In Denmark Projected To Grow
By Erin Voegele | November 11, 2013 The Dutch government has filed a report on its domestic market for wood pellets with the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service’s Global Agricultural Information Network. According to the report, Denmark is the largest importer of wood pellets in the world, with imports expected to increase from 2 million metric tons in 2012 to 3 million metric tons in 2020. The GAIN report specifies that wood pellets are used in Denmark to fuel small residential boilers, medium-sized district heating plants, and large combined-heat-and-power (CHP) plants, with CHP plants representing the primary driver of growth since 2010. While some pellets are produced domestically in Denmark, most are imported. The report estimates that Danish production of wood pellets has averaged between 130,000 metric tons and 200,000 metric tons annually since 2000, primarily from residue feedstock sourced from the furniture and wood processing industries. Rapidly growing use by CHP plants coupled with a limited domestic feedstock supply has caused significant growth in pellet imports in recent years. In 2012, the country imported 2 million metric tons of wood pellets, valued at $350 million. During the first seven months of 2013, the Dutch government has reported a 10 percent increase in pellet imports. Denmark currently imports most of its pellets from the Baltic Region, with 960,000 metric tons imported from the Baltics in 2012. The country also imported 348,000 metric tons from Russia last year. The GAIN report notes that imports from the U.S. are currently marginal, equating to only 38,000 metric tons in 2012. Moving forward, the report said that sustainability will be a key factor in determining which exporting countries benefit from growing demand. The Danish government is currently analyzing the sustainability of biomass supplies. The results of that study are expected to be ready at the end of the year. The analysis is expected to form the basis for future policy and funding initiatives. Bu 2020. Denmark is expected to consume 3.17 million metric tons of pellets, with 600,000 tons of that volume consumed by residential customers and 2.57 million metric tons by the private sector. Domestic production is expected to hold steady at 150,000 metric tons, with imports reaching 3.1 million metric tons. Approximately 80,000 metric tons of wood pellets will be exported. Continue reading
RO PAC Alliance: Draft law concerning The Sale Of Farmland To Foreigners Is Land Expropriation
Monday, November 4, 2013 The RO PAC Alliances argues that the draft law concerning trade in farmland with foreigners suggested by the Agriculture Ministry is tantamount to land expropriation as trade is done mainly for real estate and energy purposes and in favour of European land speculators. ‘Foreigners already own in Romania, through registered companies, between 1 and 1.2 million hectares of land, but I have not seen any foreigner working the land so far. It is again the Romanian farmers who work the land and the foreigners cash in the subsidies coming from the EU. The output of these areas is not even included in the farm circuit, but most is spent on energy cultures. We want the subsidies to be awarded to support food production and to compensate for the losses of farmers who produce food instead of power. The over 1 million hectares already owned by foreigners are in documents, but I suspect some land has been bought without the transactions having been recorded, particularly in the south part of the country and in Moldavia, where there has been no land registry in place. After the law is implemented, the real disaster in the land market of Romania will come to light,’ says RO PAC Chairman Claudiu Franc, also chairman of the Federation of Romanian Cattle Farmers. He argues that the draft law concerning the sale of farm land should be discussed and analysed again and only drawn up after a serious consolation with those actually knowing the matter. Franc mentions the example of Poland, which limits the sale of land 100 km away from the national border, and the example of France, where the landowner is not allowed to do what he wants with the land because the land belongs to the national heritage. ‘Poland has limited the buying of land by foreigners within a radius of 100 km off the national border, arguing that this would be tantamount to a warless occupation of the country. In France, they say the land is the property of the French citizens but it belongs to the national heritage and means something to the French State, therefore not everything goes when it comes to land. Romania should require similar things so that it may be able to ensure food safety and security for the Romanian citizens,’ said Franc. The Confederation of Romania’s Peasant Associations (CATAR) and the RO PAC Alliance on Thursday organised at the Indagra agriculture and food trade fair in Bucharest a conference on a new agrarian paradigm in Romania. The RO PAC Alliance, of which CATAR is a member, represents the largest Romanian agricultural organisations, federations, confederations, leagues and forums that have developed their own version of a national rural development programme for 2014-2020. Continue reading
Europeans Tour Southeast Forests, Discuss Pellet Supply Chains
By Sue Retka Schill | October 31, 2013 Meeting the sustainability requirements of the growing market for pellet exports to Europe was the focus of a workshop held in Savannah, Ga., Oct. 23-24. Organized by the Pinchot Institute for Conservation and the International Energy Agency Bioenergy Tasks 40 and 43, the workshop brought together over 60 experts and stakeholders representing conservation organizations, government agencies, universities, and the forest and renewable energy industries from nine different countries. The Savannah workshop explored the potential application of sustainability criteria being developed by European governments and industry within U.S. forests. Other sponsors of the dialogue included the Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc., Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification, E.ON, Georgia Forestry Commission, Weyerhaeuser, MeadWestvaco Foundation and Plum Creek. Representatives of U.S. pellet producers, European purchasers, conservation organizations and U.S., Canadian, and European policymakers met over two days to analyze and debate sustainability issues. The first day’s session moved from presentations covering a broad discussion of sustainability to a description of forest management in the Southeast and looking at the supply chain in pellet production. On the second day, participants toured industrial timberlands certified to SFI’s Forest Management standard, a nonindustrial family forest and the Georgia Biomass LLC pellet mill. The field tour showcased several tools to mitigate environmental risks along the biomass supply chain. Pinchot and the IEA task forces will release a report in early December summarizing the workshop and identifying opportunities for aligning U.S. forestry systems and European Union sustainability criteria, said Pinchot project director Brian Kittler. The project team will also use feedback gathered at the workshop to provide recommendations to SFI, which is currently undergoing a standards revision process. “Bringing European biomass consumers and U.S. biomass producers together has made it abundantly clear that there is a need to align sustainability criteria with the realities and complexities of North American forest management, and to that end, the sort of dialogue fostered by this event is essential,” said Martin Junginger of Utrecht University in the Netherlands and the IEA Bioenergy Task 40. “This dialogue focused on finding practical solutions for ensuring that the benefits of robust markets for forest biomass can further advance our nation’s conservation achievements,” said Al Sample, president of the Pinchot Institute. “The Pinchot Institute is committed to building understanding of the multiple perspectives on sustainable sourcing, sustainable forestry and greenhouse gas balance.” Presentations and other event materials can be found here. Continue reading
