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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On 27 April 2022 Gazprom halted gas supplies to Poland under the Yamal contract. Poland says it has stocks and alternative sources, and the debate on domestic gas sources is picking up pace.
On 7 March 2022 gas quotations at the Dutch TTF exchange reached an all-time high, exceeding €300/MWh during the session. For biogas plants this is an opportunity, but also a warning about costs.
On 3 March 2022 the International Energy Agency presented a 10-point plan that could cut imports of Russian gas to the EU by more than a third within a year. Biogas and biomethane are one of its elements.
On 24 February 2022 Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, and gas prices in Europe rose sharply. For biogas and biomethane this event shifts the debate from climate to security of supply.
Results of the auction of 20 December 2021: of eight bids, six concerned biomass plants. The support budget was HUF 17 billion a year and 870 GWh of energy.
What does an investment in a biomethane plant and its operating costs consist of? We show the structure of CAPEX and OPEX and a calculation example without invented prices, with explicit assumptions.
H2 2021: RDN PLN 511.8/MWh, in December PLN 828.7/MWh. 3× operation exceeds FIT of PLN 617.5/MWh. What about the positive FIP balance?
From 1 January 2022 the delegated act to the EU taxonomy applies, with criteria for biogas, biowaste digestion and renewable gas networks. Banks and investors will begin to look at biogas plants through its lens.
On 30 November 2021 the Commission approved the extension of the Polish renewable energy support scheme (SA.64713) for 2022–2027. The ministry estimates it will allow about 9 GW of capacity to be built, with support of up to PLN 43.85 billion.
Communication COM(2021) 660 of 13 October 2021 sets out short-term aid measures for consumers and long-term actions, including accelerating renewable energy and a review of the gas market.
On 6 October 2021 gas prices at the Dutch TTF hub reached record levels – over €114/MWh on the day-ahead market, and in intraday futures trading as much as about €155. This changes the economics of biomethane projects.
The Commission proposed a 61% emissions reduction in the ETS by 2030, a new system for buildings and transport, and a CBAM covering, among others, fertilisers. For agriculture and biogas plants this means a change in fuel and fertiliser prices.
Day-ahead market PLN 283.2/MWh versus FIT PLN 617.5/MWh: in H1 2021 the fixed price remains more than twice as high. Indexation and the cogeneration bonus.
The TDBP programme built 12 thousand biodigesters, but an account from one of the master builders shows a sharp fall in orders after subsidies expired at the end of 2014. Lessons for designing support.
The government sent the National Recovery Plan to Brussels. The March 2021 draft envisaged, among other things, EUR 437 million for offshore wind, EUR 97 million for energy communities and investment in hydrogen.
On 21 April 2021, the Commission presented the taxonomy criteria for climate objectives. They cover, among others, biogas production, digestion of biowaste and sewage sludge, and landfill gas capture.
METI and NEDO launched a Green Innovation Fund worth 2 trillion yen, which supports hydrogen among other things: up to 300 billion yen for the supply chain, 70 billion for electrolysis and 193.5 billion for hydrogen in steelmaking.
On 12 February 2021, the regulation establishing the RRF recovery fund, worth EUR 672.5 billion, was signed. At least 37% of the funds of national plans are to support climate goals.
Will a biogas plant on the RDN earn as much as on FIT? In H2 2020: no — PLN 236.6/MWh against PLN 617.5/MWh. The series method and support law.
In the auction of 5 November 2020 for new installations above 1 MW (biogas other than agricultural, biomass, thermal waste treatment), 0.32 TWh was sold out of almost 11 TWh offered. Two district heating companies won.
On 30 September 2020 ANP announced that 10 million CBIO decarbonisation credits had been approved under RenovaBio, that is 67% of the combined target of 14.9 million for 2019–2020.
In South Africa's main renewable energy auction programme bioenergy appeared only marginally: in window 3 a landfill gas bidder (18 MW) and a biomass bidder (16 MW) were selected. What does this say about the market?
Communication COM(2020) 299 announces stronger links between electricity, heat and gas. Hydrogen, biofuels and biogas are named among the renewable fuels for sectors that are hard to electrify.
On 27 May 2020 the Commission proposed a post-pandemic recovery fund: EUR 750 billion, of which EUR 500 billion in grants and EUR 250 billion in loans, combined with a strengthened EU budget for 2021–2027.
