Biogas Upgrading: A Review of National Biomethane Strategies and Support Policies in Selected Countries

Schmid Schmid,Pfeiffer Pfeiffer,Horschig Horschig,Szarka Szarka,Thrän Thrän

doi:10.3390/en12193803

Abstract

Bioenergy contributes significantly towards the share of renewable energies, in Europe and worldwide. Besides solid and liquid biofuels, gaseous biofuels, such as biogas or upgraded biogas (biomethane), are an established renewable fuel in Europe. Although many studies consider biomethane technologies, feedstock potentials, or sustainability issues, the literature on the required legislative framework for market introduction is limited. Therefore, this research aims at identifying the market and legislative framework conditions in the three leading biomethane markets in Europe and compare them to the framework conditions of the top six non-European biomethane markets. This study shows the global status and national differences in promoting this renewable energy carrier. For the cross-country comparison, a systematic and iterative literature review is conducted. The results show the top three European biomethane markets (Germany, United Kingdom, Sweden) and the six non-European biomethane markets (Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, South Korea, and the United States of America), pursuing different promotion approaches and framework conditions. Noteworthy cross-national findings are the role of state-level incentives, the tendency to utilise biomethane as vehicular fuel and the focus on residues and waste as feedstock for biomethane production. Presenting a cross-country comparison, this study supports cross-country learning for the promotion of renewable energies like biomethane and gives a pertinent overview of the work.

Highlights

With the Paris Agreement of 2015, the international community agreed on pursuing efforts for the limitation of global average temperature increase to below two degrees compared to the pre-industrial temperature level to address the threats of climate change
One pathway to reach greenhouse gas (GHG)-emission reductions is the increase and further deployment of renewable energy (RE) technologies. These technologies can potentially contribute to an emission reduction compared to fossil energy carriers, with the exact amount being dependent on the specific technology and its associated value chain [3,4,5,6,7]
Biomethane plants are numerous in Europe, followed by North America and China; showing an overall increasing trend; the application of biomethane in the transport sector is apparent

Summary

Introduction

One crucial pillar of this agreement is the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions [1,2]. This target of the Paris Agreement was transferred to supranational or national targets and strategies for GHG emission reduction. One pathway to reach GHG-emission reductions is the increase and further deployment of renewable energy (RE) technologies. These technologies can potentially contribute to an emission reduction compared to fossil energy carriers, with the exact amount being dependent on the specific technology and its associated value chain [3,4,5,6,7].

Objectives

Methods

Findings

Conclusion