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Sweden has ambitions to phase out fossil fuels and significantly increase the share of biofuels it uses. This article focuses on Stockholm County and biogas, with the aim to increase the knowledge about regional preconditions. Biogas-related actors have been interviewed, focusing on the demand side. Biogas solutions play an essential role, especially regarding bus transports and taxis. Long-term development has created well-functioning socio-technical systems involving collaboration. However, uncertainties about demand and policy cause hesitation and signs of stagnating development. Public organizations are key actors regarding renewables. For example, Stockholm Public Transport procures biogas matching the production at municipal wastewater treatment plants, the state-owned company Swedavia steers via a queuing system for taxis, and the municipalities have shifted to “environmental cars”. There is a large interest in electric vehicles, which is expected to increase significantly, partially due to suggested national policy support. The future role of biogas will be affected by how such an expansion comes about. There might be a risk of electricity replacing biogas, making it more challenging to reach a fossil-free vehicle fleet. Policy issues strongly influence the development. The environmental car definition is of importance, but its limited focus fails to account for several different types of relevant effects. The dynamic policy landscape with uncertainties about decision makers’ views on biogas seems to be one important reason behind the decreased pace of development. A national, long-term strategy is missing. Both the European Union and Sweden have high ambitions regarding a bio-based and circular economy, which should favor biogas solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sweden is a leading country in the development of upgraded biogas for use in the transport sector. The introduction of a new vehicle fuel is complex when the production, infrastructure, and vehicle fleet must be developed simultaneously. The aim of this article is to present and analyse the development of upgraded biogas in the Swedish transport sector in relation to policy instruments and the availability of a natural gas grid. Plausible implications for the future development of the biogas system are also analysed. The development of upgraded biogas in Sweden's transport sector is heavily influenced in several ways by domestic policy instruments. Investment support schemes and exemptions from energy and carbon dioxide taxes have been key instruments in initiating the construction of new biogas production facilities and infrastructure. The study of the biogas development in relation to the natural gas grid presented in this article indicates that it may not be necessary to construct a comprehensive network of pipelines for methane (natural gas) to develop the market – at least not initially. In Sweden and elsewhere the biogas volumes will still be quite small in the near future and it is possible to achieve biogas development without an available methane gas grid. Public procurement, investment schemes and reduced fringe benefit tax have likely been important policy instruments in the introduction of biogas vehicles, whereas the support for private biogas cars has been short-sighted in some ways, and not sufficient to achieve a competitive cost of ownership for biogas cars in relation to diesel cars. The future strategy for biogas should be based on a realistic potential for using biogas in the transport sector; this would determine whether further market expansion is necessary or if incentives should be focused on development of the production side to cover the current demand for vehicle gas. The development of biogas production likely depends on continued tax exemptions, which are currently available only until the end of 2015; it is uncertain whether they will remain in place. If biogas should be promoted further among private car owners, more visible incentives for private cars are needed together with incentives for expanding the fuelling infrastructure network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Synthetic fuels based on electricity, water, and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) may be necessary to cover the fuel demand in a sustainable transport sector based on renewable energy sources. The aim of this paper is to compare hydrogen, methane, methanol and diesel produced in this way. The main parameters for the analysis are well to wheel energy efficiency and costs, and the fuels are analysed in a Swedish context. The results indicate that methane and diesel could have the potential to be cost competitive in the near term, at least if common incentivesfor renewable transportation fuels are applied. Moreover, that hydrogen is the best option in terms of well to wheel energy efficiency, and that it in the longer term also may be cost competitive to the other fuels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus on pathways to reduce the use of fossil fuels in the transport sector is intense in many countries worldwide. Considering that biofuels have a limited technical production potential and that battery electric vehicles suffer from technical limitations that put constraints on their general use in the transport sector, hydrogen-fuelled fuel cell vehicles may become a feasible alternative. Introduction of hydrogen in the transport sector will also transform the energy sector and create new interactions. The aim of this paper is to analyse the consequences and feasibility of such an integration in Sweden. Different pathways for hydrogen, electricity and methane to the transport sector are compared with regard to system energy efficiency. The well-to-wheel energy efficiencies for hydrogen and electricity are used for estimating the energy resources needed for hydrogen production and electric vehicles for a future Swedish transport sector based on renewable fuels. The analysis reveal that the well-to-wheel system efficiencies for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are comparable to those of methane gas vehicles, even when biomethane is the energy source. The results further indicate that an increased hydrogen demand may have a less than expected impact on the primary energy supply in Sweden. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article addresses incentives and barriers for the development of biogas production and use in transport. It is based on statistics, interviews with biogas actors in a Swedish region, as well as a literature study. These actors perceive that the stagnating vehicle gas demand is the major barrier for biogas development. Policy support could stimulate the vehicle gas demand to strengthen incentives for investments along the entire biogas value chain. There are opportunities on the supply side to increase biogas production based on waste and residues, to improve digestate handling, and to expand the gas distribution infrastructure. However, the sector perceives a high risk in biogas investments partially due to the low predictability of Swedish policy instruments and this, together with the stagnated demand for vehicle gas, are identified as the main barriers for biogas development. Thus, policy makers should focus on these barriers if the intention is to develop the use of biogas in transport. • Opportunities to support biogas development with policy instrument. • Barriers are stagnated vehicle gas demand and low predictability of policy support. • Biogas production can increase based on waste and residues. • Digestate handling may improve. • Gas distribution infrastructure may expand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]