Abstract
BackgroundFrench energy policy calls for ambitious growth in the biogas sector, with the quantity of biomethane fed into the public grid targeted at 8 TWh per year by 2023. Although today biomethane in France serves predominantly as vehicle fuel, the domestic heating market, with its high share of gas heating, should see biogas growth in the future, provided consumer demand can develop and suppliers can emerge savvy enough to respond to that demand.MethodsTowards this end, we conducted qualitative interviews with some mixed-methods elements with French consumers in the South of France to explore their knowledge of and attitudes towards biogas as well as their preferences for specific product features of biomethane-based gas products.ResultsWe found that today’s consumers have little knowledge of biogas production and feel uncertain and doubtful about products. They can name reasons, both environmental and financial, for and against biogas. They favor biomethane products from agricultural residues and biodegradable household waste, rejecting energy crops. In principle, they value local production by small suppliers, find ecolabels helpful, and look favorably upon extra environmental benefits accruing from the sale of biogas. However, consumers labor under misconceptions regarding the costs of biomethane production.ConclusionCrafting communication strategies that address widespread consumer doubt and consumer perceived risk is the challenge suppliers face in order to allow consumers to make a well-based decision.
Highlights
French energy policy calls for ambitious growth in the biogas sector, with the quantity of biomethane fed into the public grid targeted at 8 TWh per year by 2023
We were guided by an interview guideline which we had developed, based on the following research questions (RQ): RQ1: What do French consumers know about renewables and biogas/biomethane? RQ2: What are French consumers’ attitudes towards and conceptions of biogas/biomethane?
RQ3: Which product features of biomethane-based gas products are attractive to French consumers and which are not? RQ4: Are French consumers ready to purchase a biomethane-based gas product and would they be willing to pay a premium for it? RQ5: How do consumers evaluate natural gas products with a carbon-offset feature in comparison to a gas product containing biomethane?
Summary
French energy policy calls for ambitious growth in the biogas sector, with the quantity of biomethane fed into the public grid targeted at 8 TWh per year by 2023. Among the different renewable technologies, biogas, a gas produced by microorganisms in an anaerobic process from organic materials such as energy crops or biowaste [1], stands out This importance does stem from the fact that it can be stored and used for electricity production but it can after purification, especially the removal of CO2 and upgrading it to grid grade quality, be used to produce heat or as a vehicle fuel in existing infrastructures with established technologies [1,2,3,4], e.g., vehicles running on natural gas can. The gap is 444 million tons of oil equivalent (MTOE) for heat production, but only 167 MTOE for electricity generation [6]
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