European Bioenergy Day took place on November 8 and is part of Bioenergy Europe's annual European bioenergy campaign. It aims to shed light on the increasingly important role that sustainable biomass plays in the EU's energy mix, especially when it comes to energy security. If all bioenergy in Europe were used continuously, it would be sufficient to meet all of Europe's energy needs from today until the end of the year. It is estimated that the EU could rely on bioenergy for 52 days this year. Since bioenergy makes up the majority of all renewable energy sources, this means that the EU runs on fossil fuels for much of the year.
Looking at the total energy mix, bioenergy makes up 57,4% of all renewable energy sources and 11,4% of the total energy mix, making it a major supplier of renewable energy. The primary aim of the European Bioenergy Day campaign is to increase awareness of the sector and therefore share knowledge about the different raw materials used for bioenergy and how the raw material is processed and converted into bioenergy. All this ultimately underlines the role that sustainable bioenergy plays in the EU's energy transition.
During the year, each Member State celebrates its own Bioenergy Day to show the day when the country can start relying on bioenergy for the rest of the year. As part of National Bioenergy Day, a success story from the country in question is published. These stories focus on the people, projects, companies and actions that make Europe greener, more sustainable and less dependent on fossil fuels. This year, Estonia and Latvia were the first to celebrate their National Bioenergy Days – both of which had only been able to run on bioenergy for almost 5 months (144 days each) – followed by Sweden and Finland with 140 days each. There is room to grow for many countries, including Ireland and the Netherlands, which will celebrate their National Bioenergy Days later this year in December.
This year's motto is From farm to forest – using sustainable bioenergy to ensure energy security and we will showcase several examples, from small, local projects in Romania and Denmark where agrobiomass has replaced fossil gas, to new carbon removal technologies in countries such as Sweden that uses district heating and sustainable carbon storage through bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS).
Bioenergy is known for its diverse application areas; However, this year many campaign participants are focusing on the role biomass plays in the heating sector. This is a timely consideration given the current need for affordable and safe heating.
The featured success stories paint a picture of the bioenergy sector in each of the Member States and illustrate how sustainable and renewable solutions work in practice. That's why this campaign has become an important part of Bioenergy Europe's activities throughout the year, in the hope that this year it will inspire others to switch to reliable and sustainable solutions.
https://www.bioenergy-news.com/news/bioenergy-europe-eu-could-rely-on-bioenergy-for-52-days/
