How to read a BMP test report: a checklist for the client
What a reliable BMP report must contain, how to assess the cellulose control and the blank, what to look at in the curves and when to commission a repeat test.
Knowledge compendium — page 11
813 articles on biogas, biomethane, bioLNG, biohydrogen, waste-to-energy, waste and regulation — since December 2019. Filter by category, type, year and tag.
RSS
Australia: LGC spot price falls in November 2024 to about AUD 27, quarterly average AUD 44.89
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.
Romania: ANRE grants the first licence for the supply of biogas and biomethane
The Romanian regulator ANRE issued in November 2024 the first licence in its history for the supply of biogas and biomethane. Goal: 5% biomethane in gas grids by 2030.
ADBA: hundreds of small biogas plants in the UK will close by 2031
The British Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) has warned that after FiT and ROC support expires, hundreds of small biogas plants will cease operation by 2031. More than 160 installations will lose support within five years, and more than 400 in the following five.
Flanders: how support for electricity from biogas works — certificates, OT and banding factor
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.
BIC and ZWE report: nearly 75% of food bio-waste in the EU is not recovered
The second edition of the report by the Bio-based Industries Consortium and Zero Waste Europe: only 26% of food waste in the EU is collected separately. Since 1 January 2024 the obligation to collect bio-waste separately has applied to all Member States.
China's Energy Law: the sector's first code, hydrogen among energy sources, from 1 January 2025
On 8 November 2024 China's parliament adopted its first comprehensive Energy Law. Hydrogen was included in the energy management system for the first time; the law is to take effect on 1 January 2025.
California: CARB approves LCFS amendments — phasing out credits for avoided methane emissions
On 8 November 2024 the CARB board approved changes to the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, including a phase-out of credits for "avoided methane" awarded to biomethane; the details for manure were reported inconsistently.
Landfill fees and the waste-to-energy market: how rates steer waste streams
The fee for depositing waste in a landfill is differentiated by waste code and strongly influences whether waste goes to landfill, to RDF or to an incineration plant. We discuss the mechanism and its effects.
Firstgas and Ecogas: first biomethane flows through New Zealand's gas grid
In November 2024 First Renewables (Firstgas group) and Ecogas announced the start of injecting renewable gas from Reporoa into the grid – New Zealand's first commercial biogas-to-pipeline project.
Methanation and power-to-gas with biogenic CO₂: the catalytic and biological methods
Methanation combines hydrogen from electrolysis with CO₂ from biogas to give synthetic methane. We compare the catalytic (Sabatier) and biological methods, the energy balance and the place of the process in a biomethane plant.
URE announces dates of the December RES auctions: separate baskets for biogas
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).
TS and VS in BMP testing: how to determine dry matter and measurement pitfalls
The BMP result refers to volatile solids (VS), so its determination is the foundation. How drying and ignition work, where losses of volatiles come from and how to avoid them.
Axpo enters the Polish biogas market: its first own plant in Stare Ślepce
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.
Brazil: the "Fuel of the Future" law introduces biomethane targets in gas trading
On 8 October 2024 Law No. 14.993 "Combustível do Futuro" entered into force in Brazil. It introduces, among other things, gradual emission reduction targets in natural gas trading through a share of biomethane, from 1% in 2026.
Agricultural biogas in the Act on Renewable Energy Sources: definition, permitted substrates and what does not count
The definition of agricultural biogas from Article 2(2) of the Act on Renewable Energy Sources: the list of permitted substrates, exclusions (municipal waste, landfills) and the consequences for the KOWR register and support.
Flanders: VEKA publishes onrendabele top and banding factor for biogas plants commissioned from 2025
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.
Financing biomethane plants: capital structure, DSCR, grants and bank requirements
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.
Polska Grupa Biogazowa launches its 19th agricultural biogas plant in Bagdad
The company Polska Grupa Biogazowa (part of TotalEnergies) has launched in Bagdad in Greater Poland an agricultural biogas plant producing about 8.3 GWh of electricity and 8 GWh of heat a year. It is its 19th installation in Poland.
Family biomethane plant in Masovia: farmers and agriKomp build an installation next to a gas pipeline
Three farmers from one family in the municipality of Ostrów Mazowiecka and agriKomp Polska are building a biomethane plant using slurry from over 1,500 dairy cows; construction start in autumn 2024, grid connection planned for summer 2025.
Gas measurement in the BMP test: manometric, volumetric and GC methods
How biogas and methane production is measured in BMP bottles, what errors are made when converting to standard conditions and how to avoid overstating the result.
E-methane in Japan: a target of 1% in city gas by 2030 and 90% by 2050
Japanese gas companies intend to replace part of city gas with e-methane – synthetic methane from hydrogen and CO₂. The targets (1% in 2030, about 90% in 2050 according to METI), projects and limitations of this decarbonisation route.
Australia: updated National Hydrogen Strategy 2024 – 15 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2050
In September 2024 the Australian government updated the National Hydrogen Strategy: the target is 15 million tonnes of green hydrogen per year by 2050 (with potential for 30 million tonnes) and five-year milestones.
Waste and methane in Sub-Saharan Africa: what World Bank data say
According to the World Bank, the amount of waste in Sub-Saharan Africa will rise from about 174 million t (2016) to about 516 million t (2050), and at least 60% goes to open dumps. Where do the biogas potential and the methane risk come from?