Bioethanol from grapes in the European community

Abstract

The feasibility of fermenting grapes to produce bioethanol fuel in the European Community (E.C.) was assessed. The net energy balances, costs and environmental impacts were considered for a range of management scenarios. Typical wine producing vineyards cannot produce ethanol with a positive net energy balance, and costs are 4–6 times as great as those using wheat or sugar beet as raw materials. Wine production in the European Community exceeds demand by 20–40%. Producing ethanol for fuel from surplus wine in the European Community is a drain on energy and financial resources. It is possible to improve the performance of grapes as an energy crop, principally by raising yields. It was estimated that a net energy output of 69 GJ/ha is possible (with an energy output: input ratio of 1.8), and production costs (after deduction of revenue for co-products) could be reduced to 66 ECU/hl a ($0.80/1). Using these criteria it was calculated that annual crops such as wheat and sugar beet remain preferable to grapes as raw materials. However, the surplus land under grape vines is often steeply sloping and has thin, dry soils, which would be subject to considerable soil erosion if planted with arable crops; it is considered that perennial energy crops are more environmentally acceptable than annual arable crops.