Biochar is fetching between €300 to €2,000 per tonne, depending on its quality, in European markets.

This is according to Moritz Kormann of biochar carbon credit trading platform Biochar Zero, who spoke at least last week's IrBEA national biochar and carbon products conference.

Kormann explained that demand for the carbon product is high across Europe, with producers unable to meet the demand.

Biochar is a stable form of charcoal produced from a wide variety of biomass streams using a technology known as pyrolysis.

The product is increasingly being recognised for its role in carbon sequestration and soil conditioning and is produced by heating biomass in the total or partial absence of oxygen.

Market

The market for biochar recorded a 52% increase from 2021 and now stands at around 100,000t. However, Europe's 130 producers only produced 53,000t of biochar last year, well below market requirements.

Key biochar-producing countries in Europe include Germany, Austria and Switzerland, plus Scandinavia, and around 75% of their biochar is produced using wood chips.

Carbon credits

Carbon credits were also discussed at the conference, with attendees learning that the carbon market is a key growth area for monetising biochar and buyers are beginning to understand this.

In 2022, 237,000t of biochar carbon removal credits were sold worldwide, representing a 38% increase from 2021. As of March this year, carbon removal prices were making €174/t.