The biogas and biomethane market is developing under the influence of energy prices, support schemes and climate targets. We follow investments, financing and market data.
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The 14th statistical report of the European Biogas Association: production of biogases in Europe in 2023 reached 22 billion m³ (about 7% of EU gas consumption), including 4.9 billion m³ of biomethane, with a capacity of 6.4 billion m³/year at the beginning of 2024.
Croatia supports electricity from biogas and biomass with a one-sided market premium awarded in HROTE auctions for 12 years. In 2022 biogas won an average of HRK 1476.66/MWh.
According to the Clean Energy Regulator, the LGC spot price fell from AUD 41.50 (30 September 2024) to about AUD 27 in mid-November. The average for the third quarter was AUD 44.89.
Flanders supports electricity from biogas with green certificates calculated from the onrendabele top; for projects from 2025 the banding factor for biogas is capped at 0.56.
On 31 October 2024 the President of the Energy Regulatory Office (URE) announced the RES auction dates for December 2024. Biogas had separate auction days: 9 December (up to 1 MW), 10 December (above 1 MW) and 11 December (agricultural biogas above 1 MW).
The Swiss group Axpo has bought an agricultural biogas plant in Stare Ślepce (West Pomeranian Voivodeship): about 20,000 tonnes of substrates a year and about 6.6 GWh of electricity. It is the group's first own asset in Poland.
The VEKA report for projects starting from 1 January 2025 gives an onrendabele top of 67.8–103 EUR/MWh for biogas plants, but the banding factor has been capped at 0.56.
A biomethane plant is usually financed with equity, a project loan and a grant. We show how a bank calculates DSCR, what security and contracts are required, and what a worked example looks like.
On 19 August 2024 German Economy Minister Robert Habeck announced a comprehensive biomass package: support for biogas plants is to go mainly to installations linked to heat and operating flexibly.
H1 2024: day-ahead market (RDN) PLN 372.0/MWh, FIT PLN 828.4/MWh. The midday price trough and evening peak change the value of flexibility.
The report "Biogases towards 2040 and beyond" estimates the biomethane potential of the EU and of the United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland at 111 billion m³ per year in 2040, including 74 billion m³ from anaerobic digestion.
ETS2 will cover emissions from fuels in buildings and road transport, and their cost will appear in the gas price. We explain the rules, the conversion of 1 EUR/t CO₂ into MWh of gas and the consequences for biomethane.
The average price of TTF contracts in February 2024 was €25.76/MWh, about 51% less than a year earlier. The fall in natural gas changes the economics of biomethane.
On 22 January 2024 China officially relaunched the CCER scheme, the national voluntary emission credit market suspended in 2017. The first project types include forestry and offshore wind.
H2 2023: RDN PLN 451.0/MWh, FIT PLN 745.8/MWh, and from 10 November new declarations receive PLN 828.4/MWh. Does flexibility close the gap?
The organic fraction is a significant part of municipal waste, and EU recycling and landfilling targets force its processing. Municipal biogas plants can help, but face financial and administrative barriers.
The Act of 7 December 2023 extends price shields for electricity, gas and heat to 30 June 2024. Compensation for sellers is limited by caps, and a levy for the fund has been introduced for gas.
On 6 December 2023 the New Zealand NZU auction produced no winners: bids were below the reserve price of NZD 60, and 15 million units (23 million together with the CCR reserve) were not sold.
The regulation of the minister of climate of 8 November 2023 raises reference prices in RES auctions: including PLN 872/MWh for agricultural biogas below 500 kW and PLN 1025/MWh in high-efficiency cogeneration.
For biomethane to be recognised as sustainable, it must be certified in a recognised scheme, e.g. ISCC or REDcert, with mass balance and GHG verification. We describe the path, the documents and voluntary markets.
In AR4 and AR5 of the British contracts for difference, the caps for anaerobic digestion were 128 and 136 GBP/MWh (2012 prices), but no AD or biomass CHP project received a contract.
In Bulgaria, electricity from biomass and biogas is supported by feed-in tariffs set by the EWRC and by premiums from the Security Fund. Support for biomass lasts 20 years.
H1 2023: the day-ahead market fell to PLN 567.2/MWh, the FIT is PLN 745.8/MWh. Does flexibility make up the difference, and what about the balance after the crisis?
In its World Energy Investment 2023 report the IEA estimates that global energy investment will exceed USD 2.8 trillion in 2023, of which more than USD 1.7 trillion will go to clean energy.
