Importance of wood in renewable energy

Wood is such a versatile product. Aside from uses in building and furniture, it is suitable for producing energy through combustion of woodchip, pellets and logs. Emerging technologies such as torrefaction and gasification allow wood to be transformed into more energy-intensive forms.

Technologies have also been developed so wood fuels can be used easily and efficiently. These include stoves and boilers for water heating in the domestic sector. Larger boilers for water heating and steam generation are available in the commercial and industrial sectors along with combined heat and power (CHP) units.

Wood is already a key contributor to renewable energy in Ireland. Heat makes up 45% of total energy use, and the vast majority of wood energy is consumed as heat. This sounds like a lot, but we shouldn’t get carried away as the overall share of renewables in primary energy was only 7.7% in 2014. Currently just 2% of electricity used here is from wood.

There’s still a long, long way to go before we achieve emissions reductions broadly agreed by 195 countries at COP21 Paris to address climate change. Ireland will need to be seen to be doing its bit.

Market drivers

A much more immediate and binding target for Ireland is to achieve 12% renewables in the heat sector by 2020. By 2014, we were just over halfway at 6.6%. Other EU targets, ambitions and progress to watch include cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 40% and achieving at least 27% energy from renewables by 2030 compared with 1990. Individual EU member states’ targets are not yet agreed, but these and the policies introduced to achieve them will drive the market.

The Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources (DCENR) stated in the draft Bioenergy Plan 2014 (the plan still awaits finalisation) that “… current policies will not deliver 12% renewable energy in the heat sector by 2020”.

The energy white paper published in December 2015 considered biomass usage and concluded: “Ireland’s limited biomass resource would be more efficiently deployed in the heating sector. Future support for biomass will be decided in the context of the renewable electricity and renewable heat consultations currently under way.”

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) estimates the shortfall for renewables in heat will be in the region of two to four percentage points of our 12% target. Fines for non-achievement of the heat target could be as high as €600m/year – this awkward reality was largely avoided by candidates in the recent election campaign.

Forests and jobs

About 11% of Ireland’s land area is forest, with the government target 18% coverage by 2050 – still well below the EU average of 35%. Annual demand for wood products on the island of Ireland is already more than 1m cubic metres greater than supply, so imports fill the gap.

Pulpwood is the single largest supply source of wood fibre for energy. Its source is almost exclusively from the maturing private forest estate in the Republic of Ireland. Private planting grew strongly between 1990 and 2002, peaking in 1995 with 17,343ha planted that year, gradually levelling off afterwards. These plantations are currently immature, fragmented and small, with resultant resource mobilisation challenges. Regional grower groups (as suppliers/aggregators) are starting to emerge but it’s early days.

The introduction of a targeted renewable heat incentive (RHI) – due to be rolled out later this year – will stimulate further demand for wood fibre, resulting in the increased mobilisation of the private sector timber resource and further investment in the biomass supply chain.

Wood energy should ideally be consumed locally, in modern highly efficient biomass boilers, thereby reducing Ireland’s reliance on fossil fuel imports, reducing GHG emissions and improving domestic fuel security. Harvesting contractors will also need to invest in harvesting infrastructure to meet any new demand.

Jobs are also generated through local use of wood energy. Calculations in Northern Ireland indicate that every 1% increase in energy supply from bioenergy has created 310 direct jobs. Therefore, almost 1,000 direct and sustainable jobs can be created from a 3% increase, and considerably more indirectly. That’s worth pursuing.

*Michael Hegarty, General Manager, Irish Bioenergy Association (IrBEA)