Biofuels

Every year hundreds of organisations and individuals in over 30 countries take part in the EU Sustainable Energy week by hosting Energy Day events and activities that promote energy efficiency and renewable energy sources.

The annual EurObserv’ER report ‘The State of Renewable Energies in Europe’ has been released, which gives background information on renewable energy realisations and renewable energy shares in Europe. It also presents estimates for renewable energy related employment and turnover in EU Member States.

A new biofuels mapping tool, BIOMAP, was released on 18 January. The tool maps biofuels projects of all sizes, provides details of the projects, industrial involvement, relationship to R&D programmes, policy drivers, associated product standards, and more.

Earlier this month Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn announced Horizon 2020, an EUR 80 billion programme to help achieve Europe's 2020 targets, which includes a package of measures to boost research, innovation and competitiveness in Europe.

The Warsaw conference on the European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan) began on 28th November - the same day as the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Durban, South Africa, at which representatives of the world’s largest economies are discussing the future of limiting the world emission of carbon dioxide.

Over 160 scientists, policymakers and representatives of industry from the EU, Brazil and USA met in Verona (Italy) from 11-13 October 2011 for the Second International Conference on Lignocellulosic Ethanol, a major event on second generation bioethanol technologies, organised by the Directorate-General for Energy of the European Commission and Brazil.

Last month the European Commission published its ‘Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe’. The Roadmap contains a series of medium- (2020) and long-term (2050) resource efficiency objectives as well as the means needed for achieving them, including targets by 2013 and milestones for 2020.

What is SETIS? How does SETIS support the SET-Plan? Download the new informational brochure (available in English, Dutch and Italian), which looks at how SETIS provides information for decision-making by monitoring progress of the SET-Plan.

ATEsT (Analysing Transition Planning and Systemic Energy Planning Tools for the implementation of the Energy Technology Information System) brings together EU competence on a transition towards a low-carbon energy system through energy innovation, energy modelling activities and technology assessment.

The European Commission, Airbus, leading European airlines and European biofuel producers have launched this week an industry-wide initiative to accelerate the commercialisation of aviation biofuels in Europe through the ‘Biofuel Flightpath’.

On 8th March 2011, the EC adopted its Communication, "Energy Efficiency Plan 2011", which puts energy efficiency at the heart of the Europe 2020 Strategy for what it calls “smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and the transition to a resource efficient economy.”

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) is holding a conference in Pécs (Hungary) on 29th April 2011 on how EU energy policy can ensure security of supply and how we can strengthen the external dimension of EU energy policy.

EurObserv’ER has released the annual publication ‘The State of Renewable Energies in Europe’, a synthesis of the Technology Barometers published during 2010 (with data up to and including 2009).

According to EC Commissioner for Energy, Günther Oettinger, the European Council’s first Summit on energy in Brussels on 4th February 2011 was “a breakthrough for European energy policy.” The Summit, he added, would be “a benchmark for the years to come.”

According to the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC), 25 out of the 27 National Renewable Energy Action Plans submitted to the European Commission expect to reach or exceed their 2020 targets domestically.

The European Commission, the Presidency of the European Union, the co-Chairs and Members of the SET-Plan Steering Group, and high-level representatives of Industry launched in Brussels on 15 November 2010, two more industrial initiatives of the European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan). The European Industrial Initiatives launched were: 'Bioenergy' and 'Nuclear'.

In June 2010 Henrik Bindslev, Director of the Danish National Laboratory for Sustainable Energy (Risø DTU), was named chairman of the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA), replacing Ton Hoff (ECN). Here, Mr Bindlev outlines how he sees the development of the EERA and how alternative energy technologies are emerging faster than anticipated.

On 10 June 2010, the European Commission published a package of documents (two Communications and a Decision) encouraging industry, governments and NGOs to set up certification schemes for all types of biofuels, including those imported into the EU.

Ministers from the UK, France and Germany have issued a joint call for the EU to raise its emission reduction target to 30% by 2020.

On 26 May the European Commission presented an analysis of the costs, benefits and options for moving beyond the EU's greenhouse gas reduction target for 2020 from 20 percent below 1990 levels to 30 percent once the conditions are met.

In response to the increasing need for energy innovation in Europe and beyond, the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) is launching its new Joint Research Programmes to help strengthen, expand and optimise EU energy research. The first Joint Programmes of research on Wind, Photovoltaic, Smart Grids and Geothermal were officially launched during the SET-Plan conference, on 3-4 June 2010 in Madrid.

Within the SET-Plan, 6 priority initiatives have been developed, including the European Industrial Bioenergy Initiative (EIBI). Its key objective is to accelerate the commercial development of sustainable bioenergy to reach 14% of final energy demand in 2020.

The European Commission recently announced plans to further encourage industry, governments and civil society to set up certification schemes for all types of biofuels – including those imported into the EU.

The Consortium of European Biomass Associations (AEBIOM and EUBIA), European Forest Owner Associations (EUSTAFOR, CEPF and NSF) and European Biogas Association (EBA) welcomes the European Commission’s report on sustainability criteria for solid and gaseous biomass for heat and electricity. The non-binding measures proposed will enable member states to ensure the sustainability of biomass whilst providing adequate opportunities to mobilise biomass resources.