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Abstract: The feasibility of deploying a socio-economic and environmental impact analysis for large-scale bioenergy production on a regional level is analyzed, based on a set of defined criteria and indicators. The analysis is done for La Pampa province in Argentina. The case study results in conclusions in how far the criteria can be verified ex ante based on available methodologies and data sources. The impacts are analyzed for two bioenergy chains (soybeans and switchgrass) for a set of defined land use scenarios. The carbon stock change for switchgrass ranges from 0.2 to 1.2tonC/ha/year and for soybean from −1.2 to 0tonC/ha/year, depending on the scenario. The GHG emission reduction ranges from 88% to 133% for the switchgrass bioenergy chain (replacing coal or natural gas) and from 16% to 94% for the soybean bioenergy chain (replacing fossil fuel) for various lifetime periods. The annual soil loss, compared to the reference land use system is 2–10ton/ha for the soybean bioenergy chain and 1–2ton/ha for the switchgrass bioenergy chain. In total, nine sustainability principles are analyzed. In the case of switchgrass, most environmental benefits can be achieved when produced on suitable land of abandoned cropland. Soybean production for bioenergy shows a good overall sustainability performance if produced on abandoned cropland. The production of switchgrass on degraded grassland shows socio-economic and environmental benefits, which is not the case for soybean production. The production of bioenergy production on non-degraded grassland is not preferred. It is concluded that the scenario approach enables understanding of the complexity of the bioenergy chain and the underlying factors influencing the sustainability principles. It is difficult to give ex ante a final conclusion whether a bioenergy chain is sustainable or not as this depends not only on the previous land use system but also on other factors as the selection of the bioenergy crop, the suitable agroecological zone and the agricultural management system applied. The results also imply that it is possible to steer for a large part the sustainability performance of a bioenergy chain during project development and implementation. Land use planning plays a key role in this process. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This study focuses on the economic feasibility for large-scale biomass production from soybeans or switchgrass from a region in Argentina. This is determined, firstly, by estimating whether the potential supply of biomass, when food and feed demand are met, is sufficient under different scenarios to 2030. On a national level, switchgrass has a biomass potential of 99×106 (1.9 EJ) to 243×106 tdm (4.5 EJ)/year depending on the scenario. Soybean (crude vegetable oil content) production for bioenergy has a potential of 7.1×106 (0.25 EJ) to 13.8×106 tdm (0.5 EJ)/year depending on the scenario. The most suitable region (La Pampa province) to cultivate energy crop production is selected based on a defined set of criteria (available land for biomass production, available potential for both crops, proximity of logistics and limited risk of land use competition). The available potential for bioenergy in La Pampa ranges from 1.2×105 to 1.8×105 tdm/year for soybean production (based on vegetable oil content) and from 6.3×106 to 18.2×106 tdm/year for switchgrass production, depending on the scenario. Bioenergy chains for large-scale biomass production for export or for local use are further defined to analyse the economic performance. In this study, switchgrass is converted to pellets for power generation in the Netherlands or for local heating in Argentina. Soybeans are used for biodiesel production for export or for local use. Switchgrass cultivation costs range from 33–91US$/tdm (1€=1.47 US$ based on 19 February 2008). Pellet production costs are 58–143US$/tdm for local use and 150–296US$/tdm until delivery at the harbour of Rotterdam. Total conversion costs for electricity in the Netherlands from switchgrass pellets range from 0.06–0.08US$/kWh. Heating costs in Argentina from switchgrass pellets range from 0.02–0.04US$/kWh. Soybean cultivation costs range from 182–501US$/tdm depending on the scenario. Biodiesel production costs are 0.3–1.2 US$/l for local use and 0.5–1.7 US$/l after export to the Netherlands. Key parameters for the economic performance of the bioenergy chains in La Pampa province are transport costs, cultivation costs, pre-processing and conversion costs and costs for fossil fuels and agricultural commodities. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Published estimates of the potential of bioenergy vary widely, mainly due to the heterogeneity of methodologies, assumptions and datasets employed. These discrepancies are confusing for policy and it is thus important to have scientific clarity on the basis of the assessment outcomes. Such clear insights can enable harmonisation of the different assessments. This review explores current state of the art approaches and methodologies used in bioenergy assessments, and identifies key elements that are critical determinants of bioenergy potentials. We apply the lessons learnt from the review exercise to compare and harmonise a selected set of country based bioenergy potential studies, and provide recommendations for conducting more comprehensive assessments. Depending on scenario assumptions, the harmonised technical biomass potential estimates up to 2030 in the selected countries range from 5.2 to 27.3EJ in China, 1.1 to 18.8EJ in India, 2.0 to 10.9EJ in Indonesia, 1.6 to 7.0EJ in Mozambique and 9.3 to 23.5EJ in the US. From the review, we observed that generally, current studies do not cover all the basic (sustainability) elements expected in an ideal bioenergy assessment and there are marked differences in the level of parametric detail and methodological transparency between studies. Land availability and suitability lack spatial detail and especially degraded and marginal lands are poorly evaluated. Competition for water resources is hardly taken into account and biomass yields are based mostly on crude ecological zoning criteria. A few studies take into account improvements in management of agricultural and forestry production systems, but the underlying assumptions are hardly discussed. Competition for biomass resources among the various applications is crudely analysed in most studies and key assumptions such as demographic dynamics, biodiversity protection criteria, etc. are not explicitly discussed. To facilitate more comprehensive bioenergy assessments, we recommend an integrated analytical framework that includes all the key factors, employs high resolution geo-referenced datasets and accounts for potential feedback effects. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper presents an overview of 67 ongoing certification initiatives to safeguard the sustainability of bioenergy. Most recent initiatives are focused on the sustainability of liquid biofuels. Content-wise, most of these initiatives have mainly included environmental principles. Despite serious concerns in various parts of the world on the socio-economic impacts of bioenergy production, these are generally not included in existing bioenergy initiatives. At the same time, the overview shows a strong proliferation of standards. The overview shows that certification has the potential to influence direct, local impacts related to environmental and social effects of direct bioenergy production. Key recommendations to come to an efficient certification system include the need for further harmonization, availability of reliable data and linking indicators on a micro, meso and macro levels. Considering the multiple spatial scales, certification should be combined with additional measurements and tools on a regional, national and international level. The role of bioenergy production on indirect land use change (ILUC) is still very uncertain and current initiatives have rarely captured impacts from ILUC in their standards. Addressing unwanted LUC requires first of all sustainable land use production and good governance, regardless of the end-use of the product. It is therefore recommended to extend measures to mitigate impacts from LUC to other lands and feedstock. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Meeting the Paris Agreement will most likely require the combination of CO 2 capture and biomass in the industrial sector, resulting in net negative emissions. CO 2 capture within the industry has been extensively investigated. However, biomass options have been poorly explored, with literature alluding to technical and economic barriers. In addition, a lack of consistency among studies makes comparing the performance of CO 2 capture and/or biomass use between studies and sectors difficult. These inconsistencies include differences in methodology, system boundaries, level of integration, costs, greenhouse gas intensity of feedstock and energy carriers, and capital cost estimations. Therefore, an integrated evaluation of the techno-economic performance regarding CO 2 capture and biomass use was performed for five energy-intensive industrial sub-sectors. Harmonization results indicate that CO 2 mitigation potentials vary for each sub-sector, resulting in reductions of 1.4–2.7 t CO 2 /t steel (77%–149%), 0.7 t CO 2 /t cement (92%), 0.2 t CO 2 /t crude oil (68%), 1.9 t CO 2 /t pulp (1663%–2548%), and 34.9 t CO 2 /t H 2 (313%). Negative emissions can be reached in the steel, paper and H 2 sectors. Novel bio-based production routes might enable net negative emissions in the cement and (petro)chemical sectors as well. All the above-mentioned potentials can be reached for 100 €/t CO 2 or less. Implementing mitigation options could reduce industrial CO 2 emissions by 10 Gt CO 2 /y by 2050, easily meeting the targets of the 2 °C scenario by the International Energy Agency (1.8 Gt CO 2 /y reduction) for the industrial sector and even the Beyond 2 °C scenario (4.2 Gt CO 2 /y reduction). • Literature review on CO 2 mitigation in steel, cement, chemical, H 2 and paper sectors. • Introduction harmonized methodology to allow comparison between industrial sectors. • All investigated sectors have large reduction potentials for <100 €/t CO 2 avoided. • Negative emissions possible in iron/steel, H 2 and paper sectors. • Potential CO 2 emission reduction of 10 Gt/yr in 2050, easily meeting climate target. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing production of modern bioenergy carriers and biomaterials intensifies the competition for different applications of biomass. To be able to optimize and develop biomass utilization in a sustainable way, this paper first reviews the status and prospects of biomass value chains for heat, power, fuels and materials, next assesses their current and long-term levelized production costs and avoided emissions, and then compares their greenhouse gas abatement costs. At present, the economically and environmentally preferred options are wood chip and pellet combustion in district heating systems and large-scale cofiring power plants (75–81 US$ 2005 /tCO 2 -eq avoided ), and large-scale fermentation of low-cost Brazilian sugarcane to ethanol (−65 to −53 $/tCO 2 -eq avoided ) or biomaterials (−60 to −50 $/tCO 2 -eq avoided for ethylene and −320 to −228 $/tCO 2 -eq avoided for PLA; negative costs represent cost-effective options). In the longer term, the cultivation and use of lignocellulosic energy crops can play an important role in reducing the costs and improving the emission balance of biomass value chains. Key conversion technologies for lignocellulosic biomass are large-scale gasification (bioenergy and biomaterials) and fermentation (biofuels and biomaterials). However, both routes require improvement of their technological and economic performance. Further improvements can be attained by biorefineries that integrate different conversion technologies to maximize the use of all biomass components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper investigates the economics of integrated gasification polygeneration (IG-PG) facilities and assesses under which market conditions flexible facilities outperform static facilities. In this study, the facilities use Eucalyptus wood pellets (EP), torrefied wood pellets (TOPS) and Illinois #6 coal as feedstock to produce electricity, FT-liquids, methanol and urea. All facilities incorporate CCS. The findings show production costs from static IG-PG facilities ranging between 12 and 21€/GJ using coal, 19–33€/GJ using TOPS and 22–38€/GJ using EP, which is above the average market prices. IG-PG facilities can become competitive if capital costs drop by 10%–27% for coal based facilities. Biomass based facilities will need lower biomass pellet prices or higher CO2 credit prices. Biomass becomes competitive with coal at a CO2 credit price of 50–55€/t CO2. Variations in feedstock, CO2 credit and electricity prices can be offset by operating a feedstock flexible IG-PG facility, which can switch between coal and TOPS, thereby altering its electricity production. The additional investment is around 0.5% of the capital costs of a dedicated coal based IG-PG facility. At 30€/t CO2, TOPS will be the preferred feedstock for 95% of the time at a feedstock price of 5.7€/GJ. At these conditions, FT-liquids (gasoline/diesel) can be produced for 15.8€/GJ (116 $/bbl). Historic records show price variations between 5.7 and 7.3€/GJ for biomass pellet, 1.0–5.6€/GJ for coal and 0–32€/t CO2. Within these price ranges, coal is generally the preferred feedstock, but occasionally biomass is preferred. Lower biomass prices will increase the frequency of switching feedstock preference from coal to biomass, raising the desire for flexibility. Of the three investigated chemicals, an IG-PG facility producing FT-liquids benefits the most from flexibility. Our study suggests that if the uncertainty in commodity prices is high, a small additional investment can make flexible IG-PG facilities attractive. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this study, the spatial variation of potential environmental impacts of bioenergy crops is quantitatively assessed. The cultivation of sugar beet and Miscanthus for bioethanol production in the North of the Netherlands is used as a case study. The environmental impacts included are greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (during lifecycle and related to direct land use change), soil quality, water quantity and quality, and biodiversity. Suitable methods are selected and adapted based on an extensive literature review. The spatial variation in environmental impacts related to the spatial heterogeneity of the physical context is assessed using Geographical Information System (GIS). The case study shows that there are large spatial variations in environmental impacts of the introduction of bioenergy crops. Land use change (LUC) to sugar beet generally causes more negative environmental impacts than LUC to Miscanthus. LUC to Miscanthus could have positive environmental impacts in some areas. The most negative environmental impacts of a shift towards sugar beet and Miscanthus occur in the western wet pasture areas. The spatially combined results of the environmental impacts illustrate that there are several trade offs between environmental impacts: there are no areas were no negative environmental impacts occur. The assessment demonstrates a framework to identify areas with potential negative environmental impacts of bioenergy crop production and areas where bioenergy crop production have little negative or even positive environmental impacts. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This article investigates technical possibilities and performances of flexible integrated gasification polygeneration (IG-PG) facilities equipped with CO2 capture for the near future. These facilities can produce electricity during peak hours, while switching to the production of chemicals during off-peak hours. Several simulations were performed to investigate the influence of substituting feedstock and production on IG-PG facility output, load and efficiency. These simulations were done using a detailed AspenPlus simulation model of a Shell entrained flow gasifier combined with conversion facilities. In this model carbon-rich feedstocks (oil residues, coal and biomass) were converted to a variety of products (H2, electricity, FT-liquids, methanol and urea) using state-of-the-art technology. The size of the gasifier was limited to the equivalent of 2000MWth Il #6 coal input. Overall efficiency of the simulated non-flexible configurations to convert pure coal or pure wood pellets to electricity (40%HHV vs 38%HHV), FT-liquids (60%HHV vs 55%HHV), methanol (53%HHV vs 49%HHV) or urea (51%HHV vs 47%HHV) are in good agreement with the literature. Using torrefied wood pellets instead of pure wood pellets reduces the penalty drop in efficiency compared to coal. Moreover, torrefied wood pellets have superior energetic density, handling and feeding compared to wood pellets. In this analysis, the H2:CO ratio of the sweet syngas was fixed to match FT-liquids criterion. As a result, overall CO2 capture rates are low, around 56–65%, depending on the feedstock used. Still, especially with FT-liquids and methanol production, CO2 emissions at the facility are significantly reduced; less than 20% of the carbon feedstock entering the facility is emitted with the flue gas. Applying biomass and CO2 capture shows great opportunities to produce CO2-neutral electricity or chemicals. When the biomass fraction exceeds 40% on an energy basis, production is CO2-neutral, independent of what is produced. Biomass can be co-fed up till 50% on an energy basis. Higher fractions cause significant fouling on cooling equipment. A small part-load penalty is observed during the substitution of coal by biomass. When changing from pure coal to pure wood pellets, the power case suffers a 2.5% efficiency drop, while all three chemical cases have an efficiency drop of less than 1%. At the same time total output is reduced to 67–69%, mainly because of the lower energy density of biomass. By over-dimensioning the gasifier and gas cleanup and optimisation section this drop can be eliminated. The syngas can be tailored to the desired composition regardless of the used feedstock. Therefore, the chemical conversion sections only have to cope with a reduction in syngas flow and not with a change in syngas composition. Altering production between chemicals and electricity is possible, although the load of the conversion sections should remain between 40% and 100% to prevent operational problems. This gives a high degree of flexibility. Complete substitution between chemical and power production while using the same feedstock is possible for the methanol and urea cases. The FT-liquids case is restricted to 60–100% load of the chemical conversion section to prevent that the gas turbine load is reduced below 40%. The economic aspects of flexible IG-PG facilities are addressed in part B. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This study analyzes the economic feasibility of sustainable smallholder bio-energy production under semi-arid conditions. The eastern part of Shinyanga region in Tanzania was chosen as a case study area. Three different sustainable biomass energy supply systems were compared by means of cost/benefit analysis: a small-scale forestation project for carbon sequestration, a short rotation woodlot and a Jatropha plantation, thereby using the produced Jatropha oil as a substitute for fuelwood or diesel. Rotational woodlots are most profitable with a Net Present Value of up to US$2007 1165/ha, a return on labour of up to US$2007 6.69/man-day and a fuelwood production cost of US$2007 0.53/GJ, compared to a local market price of US$2007 1.95/GJ. With a production cost of US$2007 19.60/GJ, Jatropha oil is too expensive to be used as an alternative for fuelwood. Instead it can be utilized economically as a diesel substitute, at an observed diesel cost of US$2007 1.49/l. The mean annual biomass increment (MAI) in semi-arid East Shinyanga is too low to collect sufficient benefits from trading forestation carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) to cover the costs of forestation and forest management. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The importance of spatial resolution for energy modelling has increased in the last years. Incorporating more spatial resolution in energy models presents wide benefits, but it is not straightforward, as it might compromise their computational performance. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive review of spatial resolution in energy models, including benefits, challenges and future research avenues. The paper is divided in four parts: first, it reviews and analyses the applications of geographic information systems (GIS) for energy modelling in the literature. GIS analyses are found to be relevant to analyse how meteorology affects renewable production, to assess infrastructure needs, design and routing, and to analyse resource allocation, among others. Second, it analyses a selection of large scale energy modelling tools, in terms of how they can include spatial data, which resolution they have and to what extent this resolution can be modified. Out of the 34 energy models reviewed, 16 permit to include regional coverage, while 13 of them permit to include a tailor-made spatial resolution, showing that current available modelling tools permit regional analysis in large scale frameworks. The third part presents a collection of practices used in the literature to include spatial resolution in energy models, ranging from aggregated methods where the spatial granularity is non-existent to sophisticated clustering methods. Out of the spatial data clustering methods available in the literature, k-means and max-p have been successfully used in energy related applications showing promising results. K-means permits to cluster large amounts of spatial data at a low computational cost, while max-p ensures contiguity and homogeneity in the resulting clusters. The fourth part aims to apply the findings and lessons learned throughout the paper to the North Sea region. This region combines large amounts of planned deployment of variable renewable energy sources with multiple spatial claims and geographical constraints, and therefore it is ideal as a case study. We propose a complete modelling framework for the region in order to fill two knowledge gaps identified in the literature: the lack of offshore integrated system modelling, and the lack of spatial analysis while defining the offshore regions of the modelling framework. • Benefits and challenges of enhancing spatial resolution in energy models are identified. • 34 energy system models are analysed in terms of their level of spatial resolution. • Clustering methods used for spatial data in energy models are presented and analysed. • An integrated and spatially resolved framework for the North Sea region is introduced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]